Global Alliances and Health Security in Times of COVID-19

Supervisor/s: Maria Raquel Freire

Doctoral Programme: International Politics and Conflict Resolution

How did COVAX, the alliance developed to coordinate pooled procurement and equitable COVID-19 vaccines distribution, reinforce or alter the power dynamics within the existing global health governance system? This research will respond to this question, focusing on COVAX-led programmatic interventions carried out in 2021. COVAX fell short of achieving its original goals due to several setbacks. However, the initiative has also seeded alternative cooperation mechanisms at the periphery of the international system. This research will analyze broader economic interests' impact on governance structures such as COVAX, testing the hypothesis that the alliance's perceived inefficiency reflects the influence of non-state actors involved in vaccine development and distribution, particularly the private sector, leading to alternative alliances and flagging possible shifts in the political forces at play, with broader implications for international cooperation. An examination of the COVID-19 pandemic-and more specifically COVAX- through a Political Economy lens is crucial for a better understanding of transnational public- private partnerships, international policy development and the future of global governance mechanisms.