Minutes - TRIPS Council - View details of the intervention/statement

H.E. Ambassador Lundeg Purevsuren
6 ANNUAL REVIEW OF THE SPECIAL COMPULSORY LICENSING SYSTEM (PARAGRAPH 7 OF THE ANNEX TO THE AMENDED TRIPS AGREEMENT AND PARAGRAPH 8 OF THE DECISION ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF PARAGRAPH 6 OF THE DOHA DECLARATION ON THE TRIPS AGREEMENT AND PUBLIC HEALTH)
162.   This delegation would like to express our gratitude to the Secretariat for preparing a draft report as the basis for the review of the Special Compulsory Licensing System. We welcome this work, hoping that it will encourage all remaining Members to notify their acceptance of the Protocol. 163.   This delegation would like to reiterate the importance of access to medicines, which needs to be discussed in a broader context, taking into account not only the Special Compulsory Licensing System but also various other relevant measures and factors such as procurement and tariffs. Japan supports the Paragraph 6 System as established under the 2003 waiver decision and the 2005 Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement. The very objective of the System is to support WTO Members in obtaining greater access to medicines, specifically Members that have either insufficient or no pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity. Compulsory licenses are, whether granted under the System or not, just one of the potential means that can be utilized for this objective under an exceptional circumstance. Therefore, the System should not be considered as the only solution, but rather as just an option we could consider. 164.   Regarding the extension of the period for acceptance of the Protocol, this delegation supports the proposed two-year extension.
The Council took note of the statements made and so agreed.
21.   The Chair recalled that the review of the Special Compulsory Licensing System had been conducted pursuant to paragraph 6 of the 2003 Decision on the Implementation of Paragraph 6 of the Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health. Since the entry into force of the Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement on 23 January 2017, the review also responded to the requirements that had now been incorporated into the amended TRIPS Agreement.
22.   Paragraph 7 of the Annex to the amended TRIPS Agreement and paragraph 8 of the 2003 Waiver Decision required the Council to review the functioning of the System annually, with a view to ensuring its effective operation. They also required the Council to report annually on the System's operation to the General Council. In the case of the Waiver Decision, the review was also deemed to fulfil the requirements of Article IX:4 of the WTO Agreement.
23.   He suggested that: (i) he would brief the Council on the status of acceptances of the Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement; (ii) he would offer the floor to delegations for an exchange of views about the functioning of the System; and (iii) the Council would consider the draft report to the General Council.
24.   He noted that the current period for accepting the Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement ran until 31 December 2019. To date, the amended TRIPS Agreement was binding for 128 WTO Members. In other words, 36 Members were yet to accept the Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement. He encouraged those Members to complete their domestic procedures as soon as possible.
25.   When the TRIPS Amendment entered into force in January 2017, Members had noted that it would be useful to consider how to make this new procurement tool work effectively in practice. He encouraged delegations to engage in a constructive discussion, which could also build on earlier reviews. As previous Chairs and he himself had indicated on past occasions, delegations might find two documents particularly helpful to facilitate their considerations: (i) the Council's Annual Review of 2016, circulated as IP/C/76; and (ii) the Secretariat's 2016 Report on Technical Cooperation Activities, circulated as IP/C/W/618. Annex II of that report summarized key issues that delegations might wish to consider supporting the practical use of the System. He invited delegations to exchange views about the functioning of the System.
26.   The representatives of India; Brazil; South Africa; Canada; the United States of America; Japan; and Zimbabwe took the floor.
27.   The Chair noted that a draft report had been prepared by the Secretariat. It was modelled on previous years' reports and had been circulated as JOB/IP/34. It contained factual information on the implementation and use of the System. It also included a list of Members who were yet to accept the Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement. As with previous reports, an extract from the Council's minutes on this agenda item would be attached to the report in Annex 1.
28.   The Council also had to decide whether to extend the period for acceptance of the Protocol, which currently ran until the end of 2019. Since 36 Members had yet to accept the Protocol, he suggested that the Council once again extend the period for acceptance for another two years, until 31 December 2021. A draft decision for the General Council had been included in Annex 2 of the Draft Report. He invited delegations to comment on the draft report and, to clearly indicate whether they agreed to the 2-year extension of the period of acceptance.
29.   The representatives of Barbados and India took the floor.
30.   The Chair proposed that the Council agree to: (i) adopt the draft report, on the understanding that the record of today’s discussion would be attached to it as Annex 1; and (ii) to submit, for the General Council’s adoption, a decision to extend until 31 December 2021 the period for the acceptance by Members of the Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement.
31.   The Council took note of the statements made and so agreed.
IP/C/M/93, IP/C/M/93/Add.1