H.E. Ambassador Xolelwa Mlumbi-Peter (South Africa)

Ecuador

4; 5; 6 REVIEW OF THE PROVISIONS OF ARTICLE 27.3(B); RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE TRIPS AGREEMENT AND THE CONVENTION ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY; PROTECTION OF TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND FOLKLORE

93.   My delegation wishes to reaffirm its commitment to promoting balanced intellectual property (IP) regulation as a useful tool for promoting research and innovation. Ecuador reaffirms its position on the need for review of Article 27.3(b). 94.   We consider it essential to have legal instruments that ensure the effective protection of genetic resources, traditional knowledge and traditional cultural expressions, promote appropriate conditions for access and use, and provide for disclosure of the source of origin, prior informed consent, access and equitable sharing of benefits. We need to take into account the need to facilitate complementarity between IP standards and international agreements relating to genetic resources, in particular the Convention on Biological Diversity. 95.   Lastly, we reiterate our request to the Secretariat to prepare updates of three factual notes on previous topics, the last compilation of which was produced in 2006. We emphasize that these updates will provide greater clarity regarding the issues discussed, without prejudice to each Member's position, and thus enable progress in the work of this Council.

The Council took note of the statements made and agreed to request the incoming chair to hold consultations to resolve the outstanding procedural issues.

20. The Chair said that the next three agenda items concerned the Review of the Provisions of Article 27.3(b), the Relationship between the TRIPS Agreement and the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Protection of Traditional Knowledge and Folklore. Following past practice, she proposed that these three items be addressed together.
21. She recalled that one tool for the review under item 3 was the information provided by Members in response to a list of questions on Article 27.3(b). The "Annual Report on Notifications and other Information Flows" that had been introduced, under agenda item one, illustrated that responses to this checklist had been rather sparse recently. She was pleased to announce that, since the October 2020 meeting, the Council had received responses from the delegation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. She encouraged delegations to submit responses to this Checklist or update their previous responses, as well as notify any relevant changes in legislation. She invited the delegation of Saudi Arabia to introduce their responses.
22. The representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia took the floor.
23. The Chair recalled that two long-standing procedural issues under these items had also been discussed extensively on the record, at every regular meeting of the Council for many years:
a. the suggestion for the Secretariat to update the three factual notes on the Council's discussions on the TRIPS and CBD and related items; these notes were initially prepared in 2002 and last updated in 2006; and
b. second, the request to invite the CBD Secretariat to brief the Council on the Nagoya Protocol to the CBD, initially proposed in October 2010.
24. Members' positions on these issues were well known and already extensively recorded in the Council's minutes. She encouraged delegations to focus on suggesting solutions, when addressing these procedural questions.
25. The representatives of South Africa; India; Chile; Brazil; China; Ecuador; Indonesia; Nigeria; Kenya; Plurinational State of Bolivia; Bangladesh; the United States of America; Japan; Canada; and Australia took the floor.
26. The Chair suggested that the Council ask that the incoming Chair should hold consultations with a view to resolving the outstanding procedural issues.
27. The Council took note of the statements made and agreed to request the incoming chair to hold consultations to resolve the outstanding procedural issues.

IP/C/M/98, IP/C/M/98/Add.1