101. The representative of Brazil reiterated his position that the CBD Secretariat should be accepted as an observer to the TRIPS Council. The relationship between the TRIPS Agreement and the CBD was a permanent item on the Council's agenda, part of the Doha Round mandate and also the object of a number of written communications and proposals circulated in the Council. The fact that there were several pending requests for observer status by other international organizations should not prevent the Council from granting observer status to the CBD Secretariat. In this regard, he thanked Egypt, speaking on behalf of the African Group, for the flexibility shown and said that, with the same spirit, his delegation was willing to be flexible in considering the proposal made by Egypt that the CBD Secretariat be given an ad hoc meeting-by-meeting invitation until the request for its permanent observer status was approved.
