Cooperation between World Intellectual Property Organisation and the World Trade Organisation in the field of assistance to developing countries

Abstract: There are two matters, which have important impacts on development of the international intellectual property rights (IPRs). The first is the significant economic importance of the IPRs and its large share in international trade and the second is the protection of IPRs especially in developing and importing countries. More than two thirds of the WTO members are developing countries (DCs) and they have an important role to play in international trade, mainly as importers of goods and technology. There is an undeniable link between the new industrial products and technology and the intellectual property rights, which should be protected to encourage new inventions for the next generation of products and technology. Since 1970 the industrialized countries have started to feel that the existing intellectual property system, especially the protection mechanisms and dispute settlement resolutions within the WIPO administered conventions could not protect the international IPRs. Therefore, they attempted to include the IPRs in another framework, namely the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). Industrialized countries have previously tried to revise the traditional intellectual property system within the Paris convention to include new and more effective patent protection provisions, but these attempts have failed because of the polarization of the issue between the developed and developing countries. Since 1986 the inclusion of IPRs has officially been a part of the Uruguay round agenda, and lengthy and complex discussions have started between the two blocks of industrialized and developing countries. For example, developing countries have argued that any provisions regarding IPRs must be done within the WIPO and not GATT, which was a multilateral trade negotiations forum and was not therefore competent in the matter. The inclusion of the IPRs in the GATT negotiations is only for the benefit of the developed countries. In contradiction the industrialized countries were arguing for the inclusion of IPRs in a wider framework and GATT. The developed countries discussed that the inclusion of the IPRs would benefit the developing countries as the encouragement of domestic inventions, a high standard protection of IPRs&semic increase in foreign investment and the transfer of technology to the DCs. Finally, after 8 years, the DCs block surrendered and the agreement on trade related aspects of intellectual property TRIPS, was adopted as annex 1C of the agreement establishing the World Trade Organisation in 1994 and entered into force from January 1995. However, the WTO member countries, which were mostly the prominent members of WIPO administered conventions, avoided the duplicity. The TRIPS agreement principally established on the basis of the existing IPRs systems, updates some areas of the IPRs according to changing needs and modern technology. Furthermore, TRIPS incorporated the basic provisions of the Paris and Berne conventions in regard to the National Treatment principle and the protection of IPRs. But it widened the principle of the Most Favoured Nations and added a dispute settlement system to TRIPS, which is covered by the WTO general dispute settlement resolution, and specific provisions for the protection of IPRs including the civil and criminal procedures and the border measures. As a result of the Uruguay round negotiations, and taking into account the socio economic and cultural situations of the DCs and in particular the Least Developed Countries (LDCs), some preferential provisions have been set out for the DC members of the WTO, mostly in the form of transitional arrangements which would delay their obligations under the TRIPS agreement. According to these provisions, developing countries have four years transitional time until 1 January 2000 and least developing countries (LDCs) have 10 years transitional time - until 1 January 2006. When the TRIPS agreement was set up it was clear that a mere prediction of the preferential provisions in the TRIPS agreement would not be enough for the DCs and the LDCs to undertake their obligations and that they would need a great deal of assistance, both legally and technically. To this end other provisions were adopted which would provide assistance for these member states in the form of technical cooperation from the developed countries: The WTO, originally a forum for fair trade, with little experience in intellectual property, found providing assistance and cooperation to the DCs and LDCs a difficult task. The WIPO, on the other hand, as a unique administrator of the traditional intellectual property conventions and as a UN specialised agency, which dealt with DCs and LDCs through its ongoing cooperation for development programme, was the proper organisation. The TRIPS agreement therefore mandated the council for TRIPS to arrange the future cooperation between the two organisations to coordinate legal and technical assistance to DCs and LDCs to meet their obligations under the TRIPS agreement. According to the mandate of the TRIPS agreement and according to the decision of the WIPO General Assembly, the agreement between the WIPO and WTO was concluded in 1995 and entered into force in 1995 mainly for the implementation of the TRIPS agreement. After the conclusion Of the WIPO-WTO agreement, the international bureau of the WIPO mandated to provide the legal and technical assistance to the DCs and LDCs gave priority to those countries faced with the immediate need to meet their implementation obligations for the 2000 deadline. WIPO received several requests for assistance, and most of these requests were within the framework on ongoing WIPO programmes. WIPO's assistance to DCs and LDCs is categorised as follows: Legislative assistance, Awareness Building and Human Resource Development, Institution Building and Modernisation of the Intellectual Property System&semic Studies and Publications on the Implication of the TRIPS agreement, and to hold national and international seminars, workshops and joint initiatives, etc. However, matters dealing with the competences of these two organisations, the future development of IPRs within each of these organisations, the recent development in assistance to the DCs and LDCs, including the Doha ministerial declaration and the declaration of the TRIPS agreement and the public health (in WTO framework) , are briefly examined in this study.