DIIP Monthly Update – July 2016
This update provides a snapshot of the activities of the Development, Innovation and Intellectual Property Programme during the month of July 2016. (more…)
This update provides a snapshot of the activities of the Development, Innovation and Intellectual Property Programme during the month of July 2016. (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.
(Covering period: April-June 2016) (more…)
Intellectual Property and Access to Science
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…)
This update provides a snapshot of the activities of the Development, Innovation and Intellectual Property Programme during the month of June 2016. (more…)
Title: Patents and Public Health: Exploring Options for Future Work in the WIPO
Date: 29 June 2016, 13:00-14:45
Venue: WIPO, Room B
Organizer: South Centre (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…)
This update provides a snapshot of the activities of the Development, Innovation and Intellectual Property Programme during the month of May 2016. (more…)
This update provides a snapshot of the activities of the Development, Innovation and Intellectual Property Programme during the month of April 2016. (more…)
Title of Book: Investment Treaties: Views and Experiences from Developing Countries
Title of Event: REFORM OF THE INVESTMENT PROTECTION REGIME
VIEWS AND EXPERIENCES FROM DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
Date: Wednesday, 18 May 2016, 13:30-15:00
Venue: Library Events Room (B-135), Palais des Nations, Geneva
Organizer: South Centre and UNOG Library
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 publication in 1998 by the WHO’s Essential Drugs Department of the document “Globalization and Access to Drugs: Implications of the WTO/TRIPS Agreement” marked a point in time in the movement to ensure access to essential medicines for all. The publication, often referred to as ‘the WHO red book’, marked the beginning of an international policy process to address the issue of innovation and access to essential medicines. It triggered a series of reactions from the pharmaceutical industry, the US Government and the WTO, reproaching WHO for stepping out of its role. In light of these attacks, the then Director General of WHO decided to send the document to be revised by three independent academics specializing in intellectual property. The letters and documents criticizing the WHO publication as well as the review by the three international experts are reproduced in this book.
Authors: Germán Velásquez and Pascale Boulet