annual report (2017) of the council for trips

1  general

1.1.  Since the period covered by its 2016 report^[1], the Council for TRIPS has held an extraordinary meeting on 30 January 2017 to take note of the entry into force of the amended TRIPS Agreement, as well as three regular formal meetings, on 1-2 March, 13 June and 19‑20 October 2017. The minutes of these meetings are to be found in documents IP/C/M/84 and IP/C/M/84/Add.1, IP/C/M/85 and IP/C/M/85/Add.1, IP/C/M/86 and IP/C/M/86/Add.1 and IP/C/M/87 and IP/C/M/87/Add.1.^[2]

1.2.  The meeting in January was chaired by Ambassador Modest Jonathan Mero (United Republic of Tanzania), the meeting in March by Ambassador Alfredo Suescum (Panama) as interim Chair, and the meetings in June and October by Ms Irene Young (Hong Kong, China).

1.3.  The meetings of the Council were open to all WTO Members, other governments with observer status in WTO bodies and certain international intergovernmental organizations granted observer status in the Council. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the United Nations (UN), the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the World Bank, the World Customs Organization (WCO) and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) enjoy regular observer status in the TRIPS Council. The World Health Organization (WHO) has ad hoc observer status in the Council. At its meeting in March 2002, the Council agreed to a request from the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) for observer status during the Council's discussions on the TRIPS Agreement and public health at that and future meetings. At its meetings in June 2010 and November 2012, the Council agreed to grant ad hoc observer status on a meeting-by-meeting basis to the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO), the African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI), the Cooperation Council of the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). Pursuant to this, ARIPO, OAPI, the GCC and EFTA were invited to attend each formal meeting on an ad hoc basis. At its meeting in October 2017, the Council agreed to grant regular observer status to ARIPO and OAPI. Decisions on requests for observer status from 13 other organizations are pending.^[3]