PARAGRAPHS 23‑24 OF THE MINISTERIAL DECLARATION ON THE WTO RESPONSE TO THE COVID‑19 PANDEMIC AND PREPAREDNESS FOR FUTURE PANDEMICS

REPORT TO THE GENERAL COUNCIL

1.  Paragraph 24 of the Ministerial Declaration on the WTO Response to the COVID‑19 Pandemic and Preparedness for Future Pandemics (document _WT/L/1142) (the "Declaration") provides that "[r]elevant WTO bodies will, within their field of competence, and on the basis of proposals by Members, continue or initiate work as soon as possible, to analyze lessons that have been learned and challenges experienced during the COVID‑19 pandemic."

2.  Since the adoption of the Declaration at the 12th Ministerial Conference, Members have undertaken the following activities in the Council for TRIPS.

Information sharing on IP‑related measures taken in the context of COVID‑19

3.  Under the agenda item "IP and COVID‑19", Members have continued their practice of sharing information and experiences on domestic COVID‑19 related IP measures they have taken during the pandemic, including on the basis of the compilation "COVID‑19: Measures Regarding Trade‑Related Intellectual Property Rights" available on the WTO website. This contains a non‑exhaustive list of IP‑related measures taken in the context of COVID‑19, compiled by the Secretariat from official sources and verified by the Members concerned. The Secretariat maintains and updates this document with information received from Members. Members are regularly encouraged to inform the Secretariat of measures that should be included on this list, as well as any update or information on the expiry – or end of application – of such measures.

Submissions by Members

4.  Also under this item, at its meeting on 30‑31 October 2023, the Council began discussing a submission by the United Kingdom on "Intellectual Property, Voluntary Licensing and Technology Transfer" (document _IP/C/W/704/Rev.1).[1] This communication invites Members to "look systematically at collective experience to inform our future approach" and refers to paragraphs 23 and 24 of the Declaration. It proposes to examine the factors that influenced and underpinned the formation of licensing and technology transfer partnerships that were formed during the pandemic – and for Members to share experiences on how more such partnerships may be formed as a further step to achieving equitable access to health products and technologies. In this regard, many Members expressed interest in deepening the discussion on this matter, including on voluntary licensing, technology transfer, the operation of the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP), geographical limitations of voluntary licences, and the operation of Article 31(f) of the TRIPS Agreement.

5.  The Council for TRIPS will continue its work as directed by the Declaration, to review and build on all the lessons learned and the challenges experienced during the COVID‑19 pandemic, to build effective solutions in case of future pandemics, in an expeditious manner.

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