At the 5 June 2007 meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Council of Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Council), the proposal to amend the TRIPS Agreement to require patent applications to disclose the origin of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge, as well as evidence of prior informed consent and benefit-sharing, received […]
At the 5 June 2007 meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Council of Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Council), the proposal to amend the TRIPS Agreement to require patent applications to disclose the origin of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge, as well as evidence of prior informed consent and benefit-sharing, received a big boost.
Although agreement was not reached, a number of countries, including the African group, the group of Least Developed Countries and Venezuela, announced their support for the proposal of a group of developing countries led by India and Brazil.
In related news, the new TRIPS Council Chair Amb. Yonov Frederick Agah (Nigeria) will conduct consultations on whether to grant the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) observer status at the WTO. Brazil has already expressed its support, while the US has opposed.
Links to further information
ICTSD Bridges Trade BioRes, 22 June 2007
IP Watch, 6 June 2007