Date:    12 June 2007

Time:    13:00 – 14:45

Venue:  World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Headquarters, Room B, Geneva

The South Centre is delighted to invite you to a side event at WIPO PCDA negotiation on "Do higher Standards of Patent Protection under TRIPS Generate a Positive Impact on the Pharmaceutical Industry in developing Countries?”

The introduction of Agreement on Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) is expected to have a significant impact on public health and local pharmaceutical industries. The key legal requirement is to replace process patent by product patent on pharmaceuticals. Though TRIPS was presumed to foster dynamic innovation and increase social welfare, ambiguity still remains as neither theoretical nor empirical studies have proven that the incentives work. Do higher standards of patent protection under the TRIPS Agreement generate a positive impact on their pharmaceutical industry? The South Centre panel will discuss this critical question based on the findings of a comparative study between China and India. The study is particularly relevant given that China introduced product patent protection on pharmaceuticals as early as of 1993 while India maintained process patent protection until 2005.

A critical element the Development Agenda may introduce in WIPO is independent, evidence-based assessment of the implications of increased and standardized intellectual property protection for Least Developing Countries and developing countries. The South Centre side event is a contribution to a systematic impact assessment exercise.

13:00 - 13:15:   Registration

13:15 - 13:20:   Opening and welcome remarks by the Chair

13:20 - 13:45:   Presentation by Dr. Xuan Li, Lead Economist and Acting Coordinator,

                       Innovation and Access to Knowledge Programme – South Centre

13:45 - 13:55:   Commentary by Dr. Carsten Fink, Senior Economist, World Bank Institute

13:55 - 14:05:   Commentary by Mr. Christoph Spennemann, Legal Expert, Technology Transfer and

                       Intellectual Property, UNCTAD

14:05 - 14:45:   Panel discussion