WTO TRIPS Council: South Africa considers strict patentability criteria to address abuses in the pharmaceutical industry

On 1 February 2019, the World Trade Organization (WTO) published a submission (IP/C/W/651) by South Africa to the TRIPS Council on Intellectual Property and the Public Interest: Promoting Public Health Through Competition Law and Policy. The South African paper endeavors… Continue Reading

WIPO side event, December 6, 2018, on the Implications of Article 27.3(a) of the WTO TRIPS Agreement on the patentability of gene and cell-based therapies

DATE: Thursday, 6 December 2018 TIME: 1:30 PM to 3 PM VENUE: Room B CONVENER: Knowledge Ecology International (KEI) Knowledge Ecology International (KEI) cordially invites you to attend our side event during negotiations of the 29th Session of the Standing… Continue Reading

WTO TRIPS Council: South Africa asks WTO members to share best practices to address excessive prices

UPDATE: In November 2018, South Africa notified the WTO Secretariat that Brazil and India requested to co-sponsor this submission on Promoting Public Health Through Competition Law and Policy. On 29 October 2018, the World Trade Organization (WTO) published a submission… Continue Reading

WTO panel finds 2001 Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health is an agreement between members

The panel in a WTO dispute regarding Australia and plain packaging of tobacco products reached the conclusion that 2001 Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health has the status of an agreement that has modified the interpretation of… Continue Reading

WTO Trade Policy Review: Malaysia explains its compulsory license for Hep C drug

On 14 February 2018 and 16 February 2018, the World Trade Organization (WTO) conducted a Trade Policy Review (TPR) of Malaysia. All members of the WTO are subject to review under the Trade Policy Review Mechanism (TPRM). The TPRM takes… Continue Reading

WTO TRIPS Council (February 2018): South Africa’s statement on the regulatory review exception

On Tuesday, 27 February 2018, the representative of the Republic of South Africa delivered the following statement at the World Trade Organization’s TRIPS Council; South Africa delivered this statement under the agenda item on IP and the Public Interest: Regulatory… Continue Reading

October 2017: Dueling narratives on compulsory licensing emerge from the WTO TRIPS Council

The October 2017 meeting of the WTO TRIPS Council witnessed heated discussions on compulsory licensing within the context of IP and the Public Interest. As reported earlier by Knowledge Ecology International, on 31 May 2017, Brazil, China, Fiji, India, and… Continue Reading