Description
Title of Paper: Localisation, Local Working Requirements, and the Local Production of Medicines (and Vaccines)Abstract:
The covid-19 pandemic has brought to the fore the importance of the need for states to foster the local production of medicines and vaccines. From the perspective of international human rights law, facilitating the local production of medicines and vaccines could contribute towards fulfilling the right to health obligations of states to ensure the availability, accessibility, and affordability of essential medicines and vaccines. At the same time, measures aimed at localising the production of medicines and vaccines may come into conflict with the obligations of states under international economic law. Drawing on WTO disputes such as the Brazil – Patent Protection case and the recent Turkey – Pharmaceutical Products case, this paper explores the extent to which both international trade law and international patent law permits states to implement measures aimed at fostering the local production of medicines and vaccines. Specifically, one of the key flexibilities that states can use to encourage technology transfer and, in the long term, foster local production is the incorporation of local working requirements into their national patent laws. However, while the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property permits states to implement local working requirements, there is a debate as to whether this flexibility is allowed under the WTO’s TRIPS Agreement. In light of the covid-19 pandemic, this paper revisits this question and critically examines whether the TRIPS Agreement forbids WTO members from implementing local working requirements.
| Period | 12 Sept 2022 → 13 Sept 2022 |
|---|---|
| Event title | 2022 Symposium on Contemporary Issues in Global Studies: ‘Intellectual Property, Technology, Culture and Health’, organised by Department of Culture and Society at Linköping University and the PASSIM project |
| Event type | Symposium |
| Location | Norrköping, SwedenShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | International |