Outcome of the Assemblies of the Member States of the World Intellectual Property Organization 2016
The fifty-sixth series of meetings of the Assemblies of the Member States of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) were held on 3-11 October 2016. They concluded with no agreement among member States on key issues, such as whether to convene a Diplomatic Conference for adoption of the Design Law Treaty (DLT) and the establishment of new WIPO External Offices for the 2016/17 biennium. (more…)
On World AIDS Day, threat to access to medicines looms large
By Shailly Gupta
Today millions of people living with HIV in South-East Asia are receiving treatment and leading healthy lives thanks to affordable generic antiretroviral (ARVs) medicines. Governments and treatment providers across Asia, such as the government of Indonesia and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), patients across our missions in many countries, depend on an uninterrupted supply of affordable generic HIV medicines to reduce new HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths in the region. But as the trade negotiators from 16 countries gather in Indonesia next week to deliberate the terms of a trade agreement — the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement (RCEP), access to low-cost generic medicines is under grave threat. (more…)
Is the Right to Use Trademarks Mandated by the TRIPS Agreement?
Accepting the notion that a positive right to use a trademark is implicitly recognized by the TRIPS Agreement would have systemic implications in the context of WTO. (more…)
South Centre Statement to the 18th session of WIPO Committee on Development and Intellectual Property
The following is the statement delivered on 31 October 2016 by the South Centre to the World Intellectual Property Organization’s (WIPO) Committee on Development and Intellectual Property (CDIP) at its eighteenth session. The Centre highlights the importance of the WIPO Development Agenda.
The IP Negotiations Monitor summarizes the latest developments in multilateral and regional fora where intellectual property negotiations are taking place, and informs on upcoming meetings and events.
South Centre Statement to the WIPO Assemblies 2016
The statement highlights that the greatest challenge for developing countries and LDCs in the area of intellectual property (IP) is the proliferation of regional and bilateral trade and investment agreements that impose IP obligations, together with the coercive external political and economic pressure to restrain from making use of the flexibilities in the IP system.
UN General Assembly: World leaders pledge action to control superbugs
By Martin Khor
World leaders at the Summit of the UN General Assembly last week spoke on the need to save millions of lives by controlling the crisis of antibiotic resistance and adopted a landmark political declaration calling for global action. At the opening of the Summit of the United Nations General Assembly on 20 September, it sounded much like the swansong of two of the regular stalwarts of this annual affair. It is the last General Assembly to be attended by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the United States President Barack Obama. (more…)
Innovation and the Global Expansion of Intellectual Property Rights: Unfulfilled Promises
The incorporation of intellectual property into trade agreements has not proven to bring about the promised benefits. The premises that have underpinned the global strengthening and expansion of intellectual property through such agreements – namely that the same standards of protection are suitable for countries with different levels of development and that innovation will be boosted – do not match the reality. (more…)
The IP Negotiations Monitor summarizes the latest developments in multilateral and regional fora where intellectual property negotiations are taking place, and informs on upcoming meetings and events.
The boundaries between scientific and technological knowledge are nebulous in some technical fields, such as the biological sciences and their applications. This has led to the appropriation under patents of knowledge (such as on specific genes) of scientific nature, which may not only have negative effects for the further development of science and new technological contributions, but also encroach on the fundamental right of access to science. (more…)
Innovation and Global Intellectual Property Regulatory Regimes – The Tension between Protection and Access in Africa
This paper discusses the participation of African countries in global intellectual property (IP) regimes centred on the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the World Trade Organization (WTO), and the implications of the expansion of the scope of IP regimes through bilateral trade and investment agreements. (more…)
Public Health Perspective on Intellectual Property and Access to Medicines, A compilation of studies prepared for WHO
About the book: The purpose of this book is to facilitate the elaboration of national health policies and strategies to improve access to medicines, using fully the flexibilities allowed by the WTO’s TRIPS Agreement. It includes documents of the WHO written by Professor Carlos Correa and published between 1997 and 2009. As consultant to WHO, Professor Correa helped to initiate and formulate WHO policy perspectives and to provide advice to Member States on intellectual property issues relating to the production, distribution and use of medicines. The content of this book illustrates the pioneer role that WHO played in identifying the public health implications of the binding rules introduced by the TRIPS Agreement.
Author: Carlos M. Correa is Special Advisor on Intellectual Property and Trade of the South Centre.
About the book: The purpose of this book is to facilitate the elaboration of national health policies and strategies to improve access to medicines, using fully the flexibilities allowed by the WTO’s TRIPS Agreement. It includes documents of the WHO written by Professor Carlos Correa and published between 1997 and 2009. As consultant to WHO, Professor Correa helped to initiate and formulate WHO policy perspectives and to provide advice to Member States on intellectual property issues relating to the production, distribution and use of medicines. The content of this book illustrates the pioneer role that WHO played in identifying the public health implications of the binding rules introduced by the TRIPS Agreement.