Third UN Conference on LDCs
6th Meeting (PM)
DEV/BRU/7
15 May 2001
‘QUANTUM LEAP’ IN INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY SYSTEMS OF LEAST
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
CALLED FOR AT THEMATIC SESSION OF BRUSSELS CONFERENCE
“Intellectual Property and Development -- An Instrument for Wealth Creation” was the topic of
an interactive thematic session held this afternoon, as the
Third United Nations Conference on Least Developed Countries continued in
Brussels.
A major theme of the
discussion focused on how to -- as described by the World Intellectual Property
Organization (WIPO) -- bring about a “quantum leap” in the development of the
intellectual property systems in the least developed countries (LDCs).
Roberto Castelo, WIPO Deputy
Director General, told delegates that the urgent and immediate needs of the
LDCs should be addressed in “deliverables” that were relevant, focused and
addressed to their specific needs. The
situation in those countries needed not only solidarity –- it required tangible
and quick results. Coordinated
assistance from partners was needed on various levels, and WIPO had been very
active in moving along those lines.
He said the acquisition of
technology and transfer of knowledge were at the root of development. Without them, the LDCs could not develop
their capacities. To that end, WIPO
recognized the need to develop professional people who could build LDC capacity
in intellectual property, which manifested itself not only in the expansion of
the number of patents, but was related to food security, electronic commerce,
health, genetic resources and so on. He
described a number of WIPO initiatives that would be deliverable, now and in
years to come.
The Secretary-General of
the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Rubens
Ricupero, said today’s discussion should lead to “deliverables”, which should
not be interpreted as a repetition of the main principles of general
policy. Instead, the concrete
application of general principles in everyday life was needed, in order to help
the LDCs to cope with the challenges of development.
During the interactive
session that followed the opening statements, several speakers shared their
countries’ experiences regarding copyright and intellectual property
protection, supporting WIPO and existing international instruments on
intellectual property as effective measures in that respect. Such problems as the digital divide, the
lack of new technology, and absence of legal experience in the intellectual
property sphere were mentioned in the debate.
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While full support for the LDCs was needed
in order to ensure proper rewards for technological innovations, attention
should also be paid to traditional knowledge, a participant in the discussion
said. It was also pointed out that in
Africa there was a contradiction between the need to provide medicines free of
charge to those who needed them and the interests of patent-holders. Local structures and legal capacity needed
to be strengthened to address that problem.
This afternoon’s session was facilitated
by Fredo Betsimifira, Minister of Information, Culture and Communications of
Madagascar, and Ronaldo Sandenberg, Minister of Science and Technology of
Brazil.
At 9:30 a.m. tomorrow, 16 May, the Conference will
hold another interactive thematic session on “Enhancing
Productive Capacities: The Role of
Health”.
Background Paper
A background paper was
prepared for the session by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
(document WIPO/LDC/2001/1) in which it identifies “deliverables” to the least
developed countries (LDCs) in the current decade, which fall under the
headings: transfer of knowledge; the
WIPO Worldwide Academy; the WIPO Global Information Network (WIPONet);
collective management of copyright and related rights; traditional knowledge,
genetic resources and folklore; and small- and medium-sized enterprises.
The report states that
LDCs, given the enormous structural programmes they face in building
institutions in the field of intellectual property, require a special programme
with vision and resources “to bring about a quantum leap in the state of their
intellectual property systems”. It goes
on to describe a number of existing WIPO programmes that contribute to that
end. For example, the WIPO Worldwide
Academy designs programmes and produces materials to help promote the teaching
of intellectual property in the LDCs, with, among others, a distance-learning
programme and advanced training courses for managers and staff of intellectual
property offices.
In connection with
WIPONet, a global information network on intellectual property, the
organization is providing LDCs with office automation software, including
electronic data exchange services. The
WIPO has also created a strategy for LDCs to create a set of national
collective management societies for copyright and related rights, as well as
linking national societies of LDCs via the Internet to a centre, so that hardware,
software, management and data resources can be shared. The WIPO is also exploring ways in which the
creativity and innovation can be made available to holders of traditional
knowledge by means of the intellectual property system. It is also working with relevant
institutions to improve their ability to supply intellectual property services
to small- and medium-sized enterprises in LDCs, which it says “are often the
driving force behind invention and innovation”.
Thematic
Session: Intellectual Property and
Development
At the
opening of the session, the Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference
on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), RUBENS RICUPERO, said that the intention of
the organizers of the Conference had been to replace a succession of formal
statements in so-called general debate with live interaction between the
participants. In the case of LDCs, a
number of problems must be addressed, ranging from peace and security to the
transfer of technology. The hope was
that participants of the Conference would really interact with one another in
the search for practical ideas and pragmatic solutions. The discussion should lead to
“deliverables”, which should not be interpreted as a repetition of the main
principles of general policy. Instead,
the concrete application of general principles in everyday life was needed, in
order to help the LDCs to cope with the challenges of development. He was particularly pleased that two
ministers -– from Madagascar and Brazil -- would take part in today’s
discussion. He hoped their experience
would be a useful contribution to the work of the session.
ROBERTO CASTELO, Deputy
Director General, World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), said that
with the development of information and communications means, technological
progress had recently reached unprecedented proportions. In terms of globalization, it was necessary
to make sure that all countries benefited from the intellectual property
system.
At the beginning of the new millennium,
when economies were becoming knowledge- and information-based, the LDCs faced
great challenges, he continued. All
solutions needed to address the requirements of those countries. The LDCs had many choices in terms of
technology, and it was necessary to identify relevant aspects of the problem in
order to focus on them. The urgent and
immediate needs of the LDCs needed to be addressed in deliverables that were
relevant, focused and addressed to their specific needs. The situation in those countries needed not
only solidarity -– it required tangible and quick results. Coordinated assistance from partners was
needed on various levels, and WIPO had been very active in moving along those
lines.
He was very happy that WIPO and UNCTAD were working
together, he continued. In preparation
for the Conference, three regional meetings had been held for African, Arab and
Asian and Pacific LDCs, as well as a national seminar for Haiti. Last February, a ministerial meeting had
been held in Lisbon, Portugal, to deliberate on the forward-looking theme of
“Innovation, Knowledge Society, Intellectual Property and the Least Developed
Countries”. The meeting adopted a
Lisbon Declaration, which identified a wide range of objectives, including the
need to transfer knowledge to the LDCs, as part of WIPO’s contribution to the
eradication of poverty. The WIPO was
requested to identify priorities that needed to be addressed. He was now submitting to the Conference the
results of its work.
Acquisition of technology
and transfer of knowledge were at the root of development, he said. Without them, the LDCs could not develop
their capacities. The WIPO had a
crucial role to play in that respect.
Due to its efforts, intellectual property could now be accessed free of
charge at the electronic library of WIPO, through its Global Information
Network. The organization also
recognized the need to develop professional people who could build LDC capacity
in intellectual property, which manifested itself not only in the expansion of
the number of patents -- it was related to food security, electronic commerce,
health, genetic resources and so on.
Continuing, he emphasized the huge gap in the level
of education between the industrialized and developing countries. It was important to make the people in the
LDCs understand the importance of intellectual property issues. A long-distance training programme -- the
WIPO Worldwide Academy -- was spreading information about intellectual
property. It was assisting the LDCs in
acquiring the specialized knowledge and skills to take advantage of the
intellectual property system. WIPONet
was the first Internet network giving equal access to LDCs.
Another deliverable was the creation of collective
management societies in the LDCs, he said.
Creative people in the LDCs needed to be rewarded for their contribution
to art and culture, and such a system would facilitate receiving royalties by
artists. Money owned to the LDCs should
be paid to those countries.
Implementing that proposal was a matter of political will. In order to be able to integrate into the
globalized world, it was also very important for LDCs to have access to the
Internet and to be able to process all the information available to them.
The last deliverable concerned traditional knowledge,
genetic resources and folklore, he said.
An intergovernmental committee on that subject had met about two weeks
ago. Its work was highly important to
the LDCs, which were rich in traditional knowledge and folklore. Tapping that wealth and integrating it into
the global economy could provide immediate and tangible results. The WIPO was exploring ways in which the
protection of creativity and innovation could be made available to holders of
traditional knowledge by means of the intellectual property system. Taking advantage of traditional handicrafts,
indigenous designs and traditional medicine could increase the income of many
people. By providing education and
knowledge for the LDCs in this way, the international community would increase
their chances in the process of development.
FREDO BETSIMIFIRA,
Minister of Information, Culture and Communications of Madagascar and
one of the co-Chair’s of the session, said it was clear from the analysis of
social and economic realities that within LDCs there were certain permanent
crisis features, such as gaps in financial and technical capacity, indebtedness
and a tiny share of world markets and services. Those were the main shortcomings of societies that had become too
vulnerable. It would appear that the
global village was ill-prepared to democratically digest the fruits of
progress.
He said intellectual
property might become an incredible tool with which to tackle the problems
associated with development. The third
millennium was typified by its knowledge base; hence, the importance of a new
vision of intellectual property. In an
era of trade with developed countries, little by little “our societies are
losing their characteristics”. The
traditions and wealth of “our civilizations are being acquired by stealth”
under the guise of trade. He added that
if one accepted that change for the future was a requirement of the new
information society, it was only right to advocate a more equitable
distribution of the progress and the benefits.
RONALDO
SANDENBERG, Minister
of Science and Technology of Brazil, also a co-Chair for the session, said modern technologies were now
dictating the pace of the world’s economic growth. As globalization spread
and network societies grew, new paradigms for development were emerging. Discoveries and information were
transforming societies faster than ever before. The most developed societies could now take wealth and social
well-being to new levels. One of the
most critical realities of the current age was, therefore, to ensure the full
participation of the LDCs in the world economy. It was often said that the engine of history was not only made by
technological progress, but by human initiative and deliberation. That alone prompted a change of the
international order.
He said the pattern of hesitation when facing such
world problems as poverty and disease must be overcome. Building global partnerships was
necessary. In addition, finding the
paths leading to the effective participation of workers in the knowledge economy
was a serious task for the international community. The various domestic constraints of the poorer countries tended
to reinforce each other and contributed to the deep differences between nations. The report today identified things that
could be done for LDCs and what WIPO could do to help. It was clear that a new set of tools was
needed to accelerate or start the development of LDCs.
He said
patents were granted to provide incentives to inventors, and patent rules must
be accurate and realistic. As for the
new information order, he said the latest risk resulting from communications
technology was the digital divide, and the issue deserved the full attention of
the international community. The
WIPONet, however, was significant step towards addressing it. He went on to say that the rights and
traditions of indigenous local or traditional communities should be protected,
since they were often important elements of a country’s culture.
Interactive
Dialogue
One
speaker told the session that many countries could benefit from international
cooperation in the sphere of intellectual property, for many LDCs found it
difficult to overcome their difficulties without outside assistance, including
financial support.
Another
speaker stressed that proper royalties should be provided to writers, artists
and other creative people, and national legislation was needed to address the
matter. In that connection, the system
of collective management of copyright and related rights could have a
significant impact on the situation in the LDCs. A further point was made that, while full support for the LDCs
was needed in order to ensure proper rewards for technological innovations,
attention should also be paid to traditional knowledge.
A panellist addressed the
issue of the legal aspects of intellectual property, for proper management of
creative disputes was needed.
Consistent guidelines should be provided to countries in dealing with
such issues. Several participants then
shared their countries’ experiences regarding copyright and intellectual
property protection, supporting WIPO and existing international instruments on
intellectual property as effective measures in that respect. Such problems as the digital divide, the
lack of new technology, and absence of legal experience in the intellectual
property sphere were mentioned.
In that connection, a
speaker stressed that greater emphasis should be placed on the training of
managers and modernization of copyright offices in least developed
countries. Along with biodiversity
issues, the issues of traditional knowledge, including natural medicine, were
of great importance to many LDCs. Greater priority should be given to the means
of preserving traditional knowledge, and LDCs should be able to receive commercial
benefits from their traditional knowledge and folklore.
A panellist said that it
was reassuring that countries were engaged in the discussion of measures to
protect their intellectual property. It
was interesting to find out about particular countries’ experiences, in order
to identify future needs and actions.
Another interesting aspect was the fact that linkages between
intellectual property and development had been raised in the debate.
Responding to several
questions from the floor, Mr. CASTELO said that WIPO was providing assistance
to the LDCs in the acquisition of knowledge.
For