Academic Panel Profiles Benefits of IP for Economic Development

On the coattails of last week’s multi-sided seminar on intellectual property and development at the World Intellectual Property Organisation came a half-day Georgetown University forum on “intellectual property, technology diffusion and economic development.”

The Georgetown forum, held in Geneva outside WIPO on the day after the seminar, was largely attended by WIPO personnel and industry representatives. Led by Georgetown business school professor Michael Ryan, the day-after forum highlighted the benefits of intellectual property for economic development.

At the Georgetown event, Ryan attributed the country of Jordan’s economic rise in part to the adoption of successive intellectual property laws since 1999. As a result of the reforms, Jordan has seen significantly higher intellectual property protection, a substantial increase in bio-medical sales force, and more educational programs about pharmaceuticals for doctors. He added that clinical trials are now being done in Jordan by multinational companies.

But at a recent Washington event, Ryan was challenged on these points by a Jordanian official who argued that the reforms have led mainly to the presence of foreign firms selling their products in the region through a Jordanian sales force. Ryan, who states that he has received research assistance from the U.S. and Jordanian pharmaceutical manufacturers’ associations, argues that marketing jobs are “value-added” positions on par with innovation-related jobs.

Also at the forum, Prabuddha Ganguli, an Indian intellectual property management consultant and patent lawyer, predicted a rise in licensing agreements in India over the next 10 years as foreign pharmaceutical firms seek to establish a research base in the country. He also predicted a rise in exports from Indian technology companies and stronger intellectual property protections.

Following Ganguli at the forum was John Kilama, a technology policy advisor to the Ugandan government and former U.S. industry executive. Kilama echoed the others on the panel with a jab at the critics of the global intellectual property system. He said that access to pharmaceuticals is not the problem in developing countries, but that a good diet is most important. In addition, he argued that trained professionals, education system and good infrastructure are more necessary than drugs.

But Kilama added that developing countries need to develop better methods to “practice” intellectual property. That is, researchers at local universities should learn to obtain more patents on products such as pharmaceuticals that are derived from local natural sources. Also needed for economic development are better: policies, legal systems, regulations, funding, investment, intellectual property protection, and stable societies, he said.

Ryan said additional forums on related topics will be held in the future.