Archive - 2006

The World Trade Organization Doha Round will not succeed without an 'ambitious' aid-for-trade package, WTO Deputy Director General Valentine Sendanyoye-Rugwabiza said yesterday (WTD, 6/6/06).

Developing countries led by India and Brazil are set on a collision course with Washington by stepping up their campaign in the World Trade Organisation to oblige patent applicants to disclose the origin of inventions using biological resources or traditional knowledge.

The United States yesterday sharply opposed the idea of commencing text-based negotiations on disclosing the origin of biological resources and 'traditional knowledge' in patent applications (WTD, 5/26/06).

India has warned that it may withdraw some of its services offers if developed countries do not respond to its requests in the area of off-shore services (mode 1) and movement of workers and professionals (mode 4).

A number of recent studies have predicted losses for Africa from the Doha trade round, in the industrial sector, but also in agriculture. This is contrary to the conventional view that many African policy makers have.

Link to a new proposal by the African Group for modalities on agricultural commodities.

This pamphlet

In an attempt to break the deadlock in the Doha Development Agenda negotiations on reaching full modalities by the end of June, Malaysian trade minister Rafidah Aziz yesterday offered a 'blueprint' that calls for accepting the Group-of-20 proposal as a 'basis to move negotiations forward' on the thresholds and cuts for tariff reduction, tariff reduction numbers and spending caps in the farm market access pillar (see related report this issue).

The Ministers of Health of ten South American countries have issued ajoint declaration on intellectual property committing themselves toavoid 'TRIPS plus' provisions in bilateral and regional trade agreements, to facilitate the use of compulsory licensing and parallel importing and to avoid broadening the scope of patentability and the extension of patentable areas.