Private actors and global health in the international cooperation system:

a strengthened link in the COVID-19 pandemic context

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic implied the questioning of the bases on which the international cooperation system is built. The crisis of multilateralism, expressed in the dependence of the World Health Organization on the contributions of private donors, opens a series of debates regarding the future of the practices related to international cooperation. In this sense, the study of private actors becomes relevant as their international participation positions them as important agents for the determination of the global agenda. In particular, the link between philanthropic foundations and global health issues is addressed to account, through the relay of specific cases, of a transition period in the approach to international cooperation.