scholarly journals COVID-19 Vaccine, TRIPS, and Global Health Diplomacy: India’s Role at the WTO Platform

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vijay Kumar Chattu ◽  
Bawa Singh ◽  
Jaspal Kaur ◽  
Mihajlo Jakovljevic
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Property ◽  
Global Health ◽  
Property Rights ◽  
World Trade Organization ◽  
Intellectual Property Rights ◽  
World Trade ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Global Health Diplomacy ◽  
Health Diplomacy ◽  
The World

In light of the devastation caused by COVID-19, the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) and vaccine research and development (R&D) have been occupying a prominent position in the field of global health diplomacy (GHD). Most countries, international organizations, and charitable organizations have been engaged in the R&D of COVID-19 vaccines to ensure timely affordability and accessibility to all countries. Concomitantly, the World Trade Organization (WTO) provides some provisions and enforcements regarding copyrights, patents, trademarks, geographical indications, and industrial designs. Given these safeguards, it is considered that intellectual property rights (IPRs) have become major barriers to the affordability and accessibility of vaccines/medicines/technology, particularly to the developing/least developed countries. Realizing the gravity of the pandemic impact, as well as its huge population and size, India has elevated this issue in its global health diplomacy by submitting a joint proposal with South Africa to the World Trade Organization (WTO) for a temporary waiver of IPRs to ensure timely affordability and accessibility of COVID-19 medical products to all countries. However, the issue of the temporary waive off had become a geopolitical issue. Countries that used to claim per se as strong advocates of human rights, egalitarianism, and healthy democracy have opposed this proposal. In this contrasting milieu, this paper is aimed at examining how the TRIPS has become a barrier for developing countries’ development and distribution of vaccines/technology; secondly, how India strategizes its role in the WTO in pursuant of its global health diplomacy? We conclude that the IPRs regime should not become a barrier to the accessibility/affordability of essential drugs and vaccines. To ensure access, India needs to get more engaged in GHD with all the involved global stakeholders to get strong support for their joint proposal. The developed countries that rejected/resisted the proposal can rethink their full support.

scholarly journals Not Tripping over TRIPS: An Analysis of Necessity and Legality of the COVID-19 TRIPS Waiver Proposal

2022 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 61-65
Author(s):  
Ahan Gadkari ◽  
◽  
Sofia Dash ◽  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Intellectual Property ◽  
Property Rights ◽  
World Trade Organization ◽  
Intellectual Property Rights ◽  
World Trade ◽  
Vaccine Development ◽  
Pharmaceutical Manufacturing ◽  
The World ◽  
Fair Distribution

The availability of vaccinations against COVID-19 provides hope for containing the epidemic, which has already claimed over 2.84 million lives. However, inoculating millions of individuals worldwide would need large vaccine manufacturing followed by fair distribution. A barrier to vaccine development and dissemination is the developers' intellectual property rights. India and South Africa have jointly sought to the World Trade Organization that certain TRIPS rules of COVID-19 vaccines, medicines, and treatments be waived. This piece argues for such a waiver, highlighting the unique circumstances that exist. It believes that TRIPS's flexibilities are inadequate to cope with the present epidemic, particularly for nations without pharmaceutical manufacturing competence.

IV. Intellectual Property

2001 ◽  
Vol 50 (3) ◽  
pp. 714-724
Author(s):  
Joe McMahon ◽  
Catherine Seville
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Property ◽  
Property Rights ◽  
World Trade Organization ◽  
Intellectual Property Rights ◽  
World Trade ◽  
Trips Agreement ◽  
Global System ◽  
The World

This Journal's previous piece on current developments in EC intellectual property noted that this area of law is dominated by the drive towards harmonisation.1 This drive continues, and its success has been such that it can now begin to be seen in an overarching context of globalisation. The idea of a unified global system for the protection of intellectual property now seems at least conceivable, even if not immediately achievable. It is even possible to state that some stages have been achieved on the journey, most notably the TRIPs Agreement. Since adherence to this is a requirement of World Trade Organization (WTO) membership, the arguments in its favour have suddenly become “persuasive”. It represents a tremendous achievement in terms of the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights throughout the world. The World Intellectual Property Organisation's contribution here and elsewhere has been immense.

Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Correa Carlos Maria
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual Property ◽  
Property Rights ◽  
Integrated Circuits ◽  
World Trade Organization ◽  
Intellectual Property Rights ◽  
Test Data ◽  
World Trade ◽  
Minimum Standards ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
The World

The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) is the most comprehensive and influential international treaty on intellectual property rights. It brings intellectual property rules into the framework of the World Trade Organization, obliging all WTO Member States to meet minimum standards of intellectual property protection and enforcement. This has required massive changes in some national laws, particularly in developing countries. This book provides an in-depth analysis of the principles and of the substantive and enforcement provisions of the TRIPS Agreement. It discusses the legal context in which the Agreement was negotiated, the objectives of their proponents and the nature of the obligations it created for the members of the World Trade Organization. In particular, it examines the minimum standards that must be implemented with regard to patents, trademarks, industrial designs, geographical indications, copyright and related rights, integrated circuits, trade-secrets and test data for pharmaceutical and agrochemical products. The book elaborates on the interpretation of provisions contained in said Agreement, in the light of the customary principles for the interpretation of international law. The analysis—which is supported by a review of the relevant GATT and WTO jurisprudence—identifies the policy space left to such members to implement their obligations in accordance with their own legal systems and public policy objectives, including in respect of complex issues such as patentability criteria, compulsory licenses, exceptions and limitations to copyright, border measures, injunctive relief and the protection of test data under the discipline of unfair competition.

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