No Shorter Floor Statements Nor Cap On Agenda Items, Says WHO Board 03/02/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Despite being in a time of tight budgets, the World Health Organization Executive Board meeting which ended this week had its heaviest agenda ever, according WHO Director General Margaret Chan, adding to staff workload and expenses. But the Board finished its work a day early (though after holding three evening sessions), earning praise from Chan. Efforts during the week to make meetings more efficient by limiting agenda items and reducing time allowed for statements fell short. Separately, concerns arose over a leadership advisory group to the WHO director general.
Medicines Issued From EU-Funded Research Should Be Widely Accessible, Groups Say 03/02/2017 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Health advocacy groups called on the European Commission yesterday to change the way it funds research and development for new medicines so that innovations can serve a larger public.
Year Ahead: A Rather Speculative Year In Global Trade 01/02/2017 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment An interesting year lies ahead for trade policymakers. With US President Donald Trump sticking to his “America First” announcement pulling back from the Trans-Pacific Partnership right away, a new trade (world) order might be in the making. In every crisis, there is opportunity, Argentinian Trade Minister Susana Malcora said in Davos during the January World Economic Forum (WEF) where the business elite otherwise traded concerns at the beginning of an unpredictable year 2017.
UN High-Level Panel, Medicines Access Find Foothold At World Health Assembly In May 01/02/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments World Health Organization member states seeking solutions for ensuring medicines access have been looking for ways to get a recent controversial report from the UN headquarters on the WHO agenda. The Executive Board this week heard concerns and left open the possibility that it will come up at the annual World Health Assembly in May.
EU Adoption Of Marrakesh Treaty For Blind Readers Imminent After Years Of Delay? 01/02/2017 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments The European Parliament Legal Committee this week did not bother to further discuss the ratification of the Marrakesh Treaty on copyright exceptions for print disabled persons. Instead, Rapporteur Max Andersson declared that he favoured putting the file to a vote right away. Andersson told Intellectual Property Watch that the parliament would adopt the report in March or latest April.
Resolution On Compulsory Licences For Patented Medicines Passes In Chile 01/02/2017 by Kim Treanor for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment A resolution has been passed by Chile’s Chamber of Deputies, a branch of its National Congress, to encourage the use of compulsory licences to import generic versions of a patented drug when necessary to protect and promote the health of the population.
A Case For Trade Enforcement: Colombia And Intellectual Property 01/02/2017 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment President Trump and members of his administration have rightly talked about the need to be tougher on trade enforcement, including promising to take a closer look at existing trade agreements to see whether they should be revoked, renegotiated, or more strictly enforced. A candidate ripe for review is Colombia, and in particular, its ongoing failure to implement intellectual property provisions under the U.S. Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement (TPA), Nigel Corey writes.
Cancer Resolution Not Agreed Yet At WHO; Work Needed On IP Issues 31/01/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments World Health Organisation members tried to agree on a draft resolution on cancer during the WHO Executive Board but consensus escaped them, in particular on intellectual property issues, according to sources. The text is expected to be discussed informally with a view to reaching common language on the remaining issues by the annual World Health Assembly in May.
Gates Foundation, KEI Enter Into Official Relations With WHO 31/01/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments The World Health Organization Executive Board ended its meeting one day early today, and agreed to have five new institutions to enter into official relation with the organisation, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, despite protests from civil society groups, and Knowledge Ecology International, led by activist firebrand Jamie Love. Meanwhile, the WHO is pursuing the implementation of its framework of engagement with non-governmental actors adopted in 2016. WHO members urged the organisation to speedily provide implementation tools such as a register of all such actors. The WHO said all is on track and is expected to be ready by the next World Health Assembly.
WHO-Led Efforts To Boost R&D In Neglected Diseases Jeopardised By Funding Gap 31/01/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments Finding resources to fund research and development for diseases primarily affecting developing and least-developed countries is a continuous challenge. Hopes were raised in 2015 with projects to launch a Global Observatory on Health Research and Development, and a voluntary pooled fund for research and development projects. However, the lack of funding is jeopardizing those initiatives despite some contributions by developed and middle-income countries.