WTO MEMBERS MISS 31 MARCH DEADLINE FOR TRIPS AMENDMENT

WTO Member governments have missed a 31 March deadline for agreeing on how to modify the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) in order to address concerns about access to affordable medicine.

At an official meeting of the TRIPS Council on 31 March, Members could not agree on how to integrate the so-called 30 August 2003 Decision into the official text of the TRIPS Agreement. This Decision spells out the circumstances under which countries without pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity can import generic versions of drugs still under patent by waiving other Members' obligations under TRIPS Article 31(f) to allow them to export pharmaceuticals produced under compulsory licence. In the Decision, Members agreed that the waiver would last until the TRIPS Agreement is permanently amended. The already-extended deadline for doing so was 31 March.

The emotional meeting chaired by Tony Miller of Hong Kong concluded the formal TRIPS Council meeting of 8-9 March (see BRIDGES Weekly, 16 March 2005). Ambassador Choi Hyuck of Korea, who as of now takes over as Chair of the TRIPS Council, will lead the consultations on the TRIPS amendment. These will continue in the run-up to the next WTO General Council meeting in May.

The next TRIPS Council meetings are scheduled for 14-15 June, and 25-26 October.

ICTSD reporting; "TRIPS Public Health Amendment Deadline Missed," INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY WATCH, 31 March 2005.

On 30 March five Latin American countries -- Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras and Panama -- requested arbitration at the WTO due to disagreements over the EU's new tariff rate for bananas in a longstanding trade dispute on bananas (see BRIDGES Weekly, 2 February 2005)

The EU notified the WTO of its proposed new tariff for banana imports on 31 January. The new tariff of 230 euros per tonne for most favoured nation
(MFN) suppliers -- mostly in Latin America -- will replace the current tariff quota system from 1 January 2006, while a preference scheme for African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries will be maintained.

While ACP countries have, in order to maintain their own preferential access to the EC market, advocated for an even higher tariff of 275 euros on Latin American banana producers, Latin American countries have expressed their dissatisfaction with any tariff rate higher than their current preferential level of 75 euros per tonne. Negotiations with the EU following the 31 January notification failed to yield any results, leading to this request for arbitration. This arbitration does not arise from WTO rules, but is the result of a special agreement between the EU and the Latin American countries concerned.

ICTSD reporting; " Latin America: Banana Producers Go to WTO," FINANCIAL TIMES, 30 March 2005

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At the Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) Special (negotiating) Session meeting on 5 April, WTO Members continued a discussion started at a 28 February session on two previously submitted contributions. The first, by a group of seven delegations -- Argentina, Brazil, Canada, India, Mexico, New Zealand and Norway -- addresses the issue of enhanced third-party rights at all stages of the dispute settlement process. The second contribution, presented by the US, relates to the provision of additional guidance to WTO panels and the Appellate Body concerning the nature and scope of their work, as well as rules for interpreting WTO agreements (see BRIDGES Weekly, 2 March 2005). These discussions were held in informal mode; sources report that consensus did not appear to be emerging.

Two new proposals were also discussed. The first was jointly submitted by the EU and Japan and the second by the EU alone. The EU-Japan joint proposal outlined suggested procedures to follow in cases where a Member had taken a measure to comply with the DSB's recommendations and rulings, while the complainant had simultaneously been granted authorisation to retaliate against the Member concerned. The EU paper built upon earlier contributions seeking the installation of a permanent WTO dispute settlement panel. Both Malaysia and Australia indicated that they would soon submit contributions.

The next DSB special session is scheduled for 9-10 May.

ICTSD reporting