15.3. The Chairman recalled that there were 13 requests for observer status submitted by IGOs pending at the TRIPS Council. The updated list could be found in document IP/C/W/52/Rev.13. In June 2011, the Council had requested the Secretariat to contact the IGOs with pending requests in order to update the information they had provided earlier, including the nature of their work and the reasons for their interest in being accorded observer status. As regards these 13 IGOs, the Secretariat had received updated information 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 since it had renewed its request as recently as 24 November 2010 by means of a letter addressed to the WTO Director-General. This information was available on the Members' website.
15.4. He said that, as requested by the Council at its last meeting, he had continued his consultations on the issue of observer status, in particular in light of this updated information. Unfortunately, he was not in a position to report any new thinking in respect of these requests.
