IP AND PUBLIC INTEREST
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY FOR DEVELOPMENT GROUP -
SIDE EVENT:
30 YEARS OF TRIPS: EXPECTATIONS AND CONCERNS
OF DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
COMMUNICATION FROM
BANGLADESH, BRAZIL, COLOMBIA AND INDIA
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1. The World Trade Organization Agreement on Trade
Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) entered into force on 1
January 1995 as part of the Marrakesh Agreement establishing the World Trade
Organization (WTO Agreement).
2. This Agreement built minimum standards
on top of an earlier international intellectual property framework administered
by WIPO.
3. The TRIPS Agreement was part of a
'single undertaking', by which 124 founding Members (and then 42 acceding
Members) to the WTO accepted it as an integral part of an indivisible set of
agreements comprising the WTO.
4. Thirty years later, a discussion on
its evolution and impact will help to improve the available information,
providing valuable insights and reflections for assessing the expectations of
developing countries and the outcomes of implementation of TRIPS.
5. The informal group of countries
known as "Intellectual Property
(IP) for Development" plans to host an informal side event, on the margins of the
regular TRIPS Council session on the afternoon on 19 March, one day before the
TRIPS Council session of the 20 and 21 March 2025. The signing Members
invite delegates and experts to an initial discussion to reflect on the history
of the TRIPS negotiations, 30 years after their conclusion.
6. At the formal Council for TRIPS
session, the participating Members will present a brief summary of the event
and its key takeaways and reflections.
7. We encourage Members to
participate, either in-person or online, for a valuable information‑sharing
experience featuring
high-level speakers and panellists from different background and
expertise.
The Group also looks forward to future
such exchanges on issues of interest relevant to the Council for TRIPS to
enrich shared information, dialogue and understandings
among the Members of the WTO.
DRAFT Programme
30 years of TRIPS: Expectations and concerns of developing
countries
Wednesday 19 March
1 P.M. – (Room S1, WTO)
Hybrid event – Link
will be provided
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1:00 PM - 1:45 PM
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Light snacks (Indian samosas)
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1:50 PM - 2:00 PM
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Opening
remarks and introduction
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2:00 PM - 2:30 PM
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Section 1: A history of
the TRIPS negotiations
The context, the main actors and the process of
negotiations – Mr. Carlos Correa, Executive Director of the South
Centre
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2:30 PM to 3:15 PM
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Section 2: Experiences of
National negotiators
(15 minutes each)
Representative from the Federative Republic of
Brazil – Ambassador Celso Amorim (online)
Representative from the Republic of India -
Ms. Jayashree Watal (online)
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3:15 PM – 4:15 PM
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Section 3: Examples of issues and provisions during
the negotiations: 8 minutes each and then discussion
(exact topics to be discussed in a coordination
meeting with panelists):
Joshua Sarnoff, Raymond P.
Niro Professor of Intellectual Property Law, DePaul College of Law (online)
James Love, Director of
Knowledge Ecology Internacional -KEI- (in-person)
Ellen’t Hoen, expert from
Medicines Law&Policy (in‑person)
Sean Flynn, Director of
the Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property, American
University (in‑person)
Sangeeta Shashikant Third
World Network –TWN- (in‑person)
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4:15 PM – 4:30 PM
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Closing
session
Summary of key
findings and preparation of potential June side event.
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4:30 PM - Onwards
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Farewell
and light snack
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