*(The author thanks Mirza Alas and Alexandre Gajardo for their notes of the 2nd round of informal consultations held on 22 June 2016 and Sophia Simon for transcribing the statements delegations made during the plenary discussions held on 1 July 2016.)
30 June 2016
By Sophia Simon
The World Intellectual Property Organization’s (WIPO) Standing Committee on the Law of Patents (SCP) plays a significant role as the United Nation’s only dedicated, multilateral forum for the discussion on patents. The WIPO SCP convened for its 24th session in Geneva from 27 June 2016 to 30 June 2016.
On Wednesday morning, 29 June 2016, Nigeria, on behalf of the African Group, presented a revised proposal (SCP/24/4) for a WIPO work program on Patents and Health at the Standing Committee on the Law of Patents (SCP). The African Group proposal is a welcome breath of fresh air in the patent committee; the proposal aims to make WIPO more responsive to recent developments including: 1) “Challenges to public health …. Continue Reading
At the 32nd session (13 June 2016 – 1 July 2016) of the Human Rights Council, a bloc of countries known as the the Core Group (Brazil, Egypt, Indonesia, India, Senegal, South Africa and Thailand) have tabled a resolution on access to medicines “premised on the primacy of human rights over international trade, investment and intellectual property regimes.” The draft resolution complements the work of the United Nations High-Level Panel on Access to Medicines in reviewing and assessing “proposals and recommend solutions for remedying the policy incoherence between the justifiable rights of inven Continue Reading
On Friday, 20 May 2016, the World Health Organization (WHO) published document A69/40, Follow-up to the report of the Consultative Expert Working Group on Research and Development: Financing and Coordination — Report of the open-ended meeting of Member States. This… Continue Reading
(More on Colombia here: /colombia)
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The World Health Organization (WHO) is convening an open-ended meeting of member states on the Follow-up of the report of the Consultative Expert Working Group on Research and Development: Financing and Coordination (CEWG) in Geneva, Switzerland at WHO headquarters from 2 May 2016 to 4 May 2016. The WHO has published the provisional agenda, the proposed program of work and progress report. Continue Reading
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is convening its 17th session of the Committee on Intellectual Property and Development (CDIP17) from 11 April 2016 to 15 April 2016. The mandate of the Committee is to “develop a work-program for implementing the 45 adopted Development Agenda recommendations” and “monitor, assess, discuss and report on the implementation of all recommendations adopted” (Source: WIPO page on the Committee on Development And Intellectual Property).
In a sternly worded letter dated 18 February 2016, the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC), the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (the Chamber) and the United States Council for International Business (USCIB) wrote Senator Orrin Hatch (Republican – Utah) expressing serious reservations with the United Nations High-Level Panel on Access to Medicines (UN HLP). Continue Reading
GSK has made a major announcement of new policies to expand access to its patented medicines. A copy of the press statement is here. Continue Reading