WTO Members Discuss LDC Extension Proposal

When the WTO agreements entered into force in 1995, LDCs were given until 1 January 2006 to implement the obligations contained in the then-newly adopted WTO TRIPS Agreement. In 2002, the LDC transition period was extended until 2016 for pharmaceutical patents, with a later 2005 decision extending the period for all intellectual property (IP) rights until July 2013.

At the WTO’s 2011 Ministerial Conference, trade ministers directed the TRIPS Council “to give full consideration to a duly motivated request from least developed country members for an extension of their transition period,” in light of the impending deadline.

In this context, Nepal presented on the LDC Group’s behalf a proposal- first tabled by Haiti at last November’s TRIPS Council meeting - that would extend the period for such members to enforce the TRIPS Agreement until a given country “cease[s] to be a least developed country member.”

“LDCs have not been able to develop their productive capacities, which limit their meaningful integration into the world economy [and] continue to be characterised by multiple structural constraints that include low per capita income, low level of human development, and extreme vulnerabilities to external shocks,” Nepal noted.

Non-LDC developing countries voiced their support for the extension proposal. India, for instance, indicated that the provisions of TRIPS Article 66.1, upon which the LDC request is made, “are precise and provide no discretion to the TRIPS Council to either deny the request or impose any further conditions on the LDCs.”

Developed countries, for the most part, also supported the principle of an extension of the transition period, while saying that further consultations are needed on its modalities. The EU, for its part, said that any extension of the transition period should be based on assessment of “the reality on the ground.”

Despite there being overall support regarding the possibility of an extension, members did not specify whether this should be granted for as long as a country remains an LDC - as per the LDC Group’s proposal - or whether another deadline should be set.

World Health Organization Director General Margaret Chan has publicly backed an extension of the LDC transition period. The UN Development Programme and UNAIDS have similarly supported such a measure. In addition, around 375 civil society organisations have co-signed a letter calling on WTO members to unconditionally agree to an extension of the transition period, in line with the terms of the LDC Group’s request.

The topic will be examined at the upcoming TRIPS Council meeting in June, ahead of the July expiration date.