Ambassador Alfredo Suescum (Panama)

Brazil

14 OBSERVER STATUS FOR INTERNATIONAL INTERGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS

431. I would like to associate my delegation with the statement made by the delegation of India. Brazil is also a strong supporter of the participation of observers in the work of the Council and its debates. My delegation is of the view that the work of the CBD Secretariat would actively support the discussions in this Council. Similarly, we would welcome the participation of the South Centre as an IGO with more than 50 members that are also Members of the WTO.

The Council took note of the statements made and agreed to revert to the matter at its next meeting.

14.1. The Chairman recalled that, at its meeting in November 2012, the Council had agreed to grant ad hoc observer status on a meeting-by-meeting basis to the Cooperation Council of the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). There remained 13 pending requests for observer status in the TRIPS Council by other intergovernmental organizations. The updated list was contained in document IP/C/W/52/Rev.13. In June 2011, the Council had requested the Secretariat to contact the IGOs with pending requests to update any information they had provided earlier, including on the nature of their work and the reasons for their interest in being granted observer status. As regards those IGOs, the Secretariat had received updated information as requested from the Conférence des Ministres de l'Agriculture de l'Afrique de l'Ouest et du Centre (CMA/AOC), the International Organization of Vine and Wine (OIV), the South Centre, and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Furthermore, the CBD Secretariat had informed the Secretariat that it felt that no update was necessary, having already renewed its request as recently as 24 November 2010 by letter addressed to the WTO Director-General. This information was available on the Members' website.

14.2. As requested by the Council at its last meeting, he had continued his consultations on the requests for observer status from the five IGOs that had recently provided updated information, as well as on the requests from eight other organizations that had not yet updated their information. He said that, unfortunately, he was not in a position to report any new thinking in respect of those requests.

14.3. The representatives of India, Brazil, Ecuador, Indonesia, Cuba, Nepal, Zimbabwe, the United States, Saudi Arabia, and the Dominican Republic took the floor under this agenda item. The statements will be reproduced in an addendum to the present record.

14.4. The Council took note of the statements made and agreed to revert to the matter at its next meeting.

IP/C/M/73, IP/C/M/73/Add.1