WHO Official On Antimicrobial Resistance: Poor Quality Medicines Entering At “Last Mile” To Patient 05/10/2017 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment NEW YORK — At a recent event on the margin of the United Nations General Assembly, a senior World Health Organization official gave an update on global efforts against substandard and falsified medicines in the context of the fight against antimicrobial resistance (AMR). And a key issue is that often after arriving safely in the capitals, something happens just before quality-assured medicines reach the patient, contributing to AMR.
E-Commerce Regulation Needs Harmonisation, Labour Rules Should Be Part Of Trade Laws, Panellists Say 04/10/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment As electronic commerce is on the rise, attempts to regulate it are fragmented and in need of harmonisation, according to a panel at the recent World Trade Organization Public Forum. Intellectual property could be a harmonisation tool and is a market maker, one of the panellists said. Separately, a session looked at the relationship that they said should exist between trade and labour rights, and said the way goods are produced should be taken into account in WTO rules.
Human Rights Go Hand In Hand With IP In Making Health Systems Work, UN Forum Hears 03/10/2017 by Peter Kenny for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Innovation is vital for the development of medicines, but innovation without proper access to them is pointless, Roberto Azevêdo, Director-General of World Trade Organization has said. Several other agency heads spoke at the same event, where World Health Organization Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stressed the importance of universal health coverage.
WIPO General Assembly Opens; Delegates In Starting Block To Discuss Budget, Normative Work 02/10/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The annual World Intellectual Property Organization General Assembly opened today for 10 days during which delegates have to agree on budget, and on several decisions which might lead to more normative activities on the part of the organisation, although impatience is not equally shared depending on subjects. Separately, the United States submitted a new proposal on the budget, and the European Union tabled a proposal on a new mandate for the WIPO genetic resources and traditional knowledge committee.
E-Commerce: Some Developing Countries Push Back On Idea Of New WTO Rules 29/09/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment While the profile of electronic commerce is rising in diverse international fora, some developing countries are saying they do not want to discuss a new negotiating mandate for e-commerce rules at the World Trade Organization. The current work programme on e-commerce is still adequate, they find, and the WTO Ministerial Conference in December should address more pressing issues, such as agriculture, or completing the Doha Development Round negotiations.
ARIPO, Japan Government To Train 1,000 People In IP Systems In Africa 29/09/2017 by Maina Waruru for Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments The government of Japan, in partnership with the African Region Intellectual Property Organisation (ARIPO), has begun implementation of a project meant to train 1,000 people across Africa in intellectual property systems. The World Intellectual Property Organization also plays a role.
Disparity In Access To Medicines Spurs “Humanitarian” Patent Licensing 28/09/2017 by Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment “There are shameful access disparities around the world” to life-saving medicines, Harvard University Global Access in Action project Co-Director Quentin Palfrey said at a 26 September Center for Strategic and International Studies event in Washington, DC. And while some of the challenges to fuller access involve pricing, getting medicines to poorer countries or populations means overcoming the obstacles of insufficient research and development (R&D) incentives, access barriers and polarised politics, he said.
Initiative Aims At Using New Technologies To Reinvigorate International Trade 27/09/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment As protectionism tempts some, the International Chamber of Commerce Brazil is launching an initiative to bring new technologies to the rescue of international trade. The new digital age holds promise and is inevitable, but requires solid policymaking and improvement in such areas as education and broadband coverage to deliver on its possibilities, panellists at the World Trade Organization Public Forum said today.
UN Technology Bank To Build IP Infrastructure In LDCs; Private Sector Funds Needed 27/09/2017 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment NEW YORK — A new United Nations Technology Bank for least-developed countries aimed at growing technology transfer and intellectual property infrastructure across the 48 poorest nations became operational at last week’s annual UN General Assembly in New York. The bank’s creation represents the first target of the 2030 UN Sustainable Development Goals to be achieved.
G7 ICT Ministers: Free Data Flows, More Access To Data, But IP Protection Nevertheless 26/09/2017 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Openness, security and the support for innovation through the empowerment of small and medium companies are the three core points of the joint statement of the G7 ICT Ministers after their two-day meeting in Turin, Italy ending today. While the host, Italian Minister of Economic Development Carlo Calenda, heavily underlined the need to avoid in digitalisation policies the mistakes made in globalisation, many topics of the final statement point to highly familiar commitments, with better protection of intellectual property being one.