[Ip-health] Will the G8 Endorse Compulsory Licenses ?

[Ira Glazer]

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/dbe5b6f4-0a19-11dc-93ae-000b5df10621.html

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In a shift away from placing obligations on its own members, the G8 puts
the onus on others to cut the price of medicines by increasing pressure
on the pharmaceuticals industry to cut its prices and on African
governments to reduce tariffs and taxes on imported drugs...Although the
pharmaceutical industry has strongly criticised the recent =93compulsory
licences=94 issued by Thailand and Brazil to waive drug company patents
and authorise the production of cheaper copycat alternatives, the G8
implicitly endorses the moves by supporting the use of the full
flexibilities of the World Trade Organisation=92s Trips agreement, which
permits such licences. The G8 will call on drug companies to =93review
price policies=94, enhance access, support local drug production and
strengthen laboratory capacity.

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Leaked G8 paper signals Aids fund boost

By Hugh Williamson in Berlin and Andrew Jack in London

Published: May 24 2007 18:43 | Last updated: May 24 2007 18:43

Next month=92s G8 summit of leading industrial nations is set to boost
funding for Aids and malaria treatment in Africa but also to press
African states to improve governance systems, according to a leaked
draft of the summit=92s Africa communiqu=E9.

In the draft, labelled =93Restricted=94 and dated May 17, the G8 countries
stress their =93firm resolve=94 to meet commitments made at the 2005
Gleneagles G8 summit to increase aid to Africa by $25bn (=8019bn, =A312.5bn=
)
by 2010. They provide no concrete steps on how this will be done.
Campaign groups say the G8 countries are already falling behind on the
2005 commitment.

Leaders from six African countries, including Nigeria, South Africa and
Ghana, are due to attend the summit. Germany, the host, is expecting the
gathering to endorse =93reform partnerships=94 with governments that
continue to pursue sound economic and governance strategies. To this
end, the summit supports =93sound development strategies with
appropriately targeted aid=94, the draft says. African countries are
expected to establish =93clear objectives . . . benchmarks and effective
monitoring=94 of development programmes.

The summit will announce a new pledge to the Global Fund to fight Aids,
Tuberculosis and Malaria, a leading multilateral health initiative,
according to the draft. The fund is requesting up to $10bn from the G8
for the period until 2010, people close to the fund said.

In a shift away from placing obligations on its own members, the G8 puts
the onus on others to cut the price of medicines by increasing pressure
on the pharmaceuticals industry to cut its prices and on African
governments to reduce tariffs and taxes on imported drugs.

African governments should also strengthen their health systems,
procurement practices, registration policies, accountability and
transparency, the draft says.

Although the pharmaceutical industry has strongly criticised the recent
=93compulsory licences=94 issued by Thailand and Brazil to waive drug
company patents and authorise the production of cheaper copycat
alternatives, the G8 implicitly endorses the moves by supporting the use
of the full flexibilities of the World Trade Organisation=92s Trips
agreement, which permits such licences.

The G8 will call on drug companies to =93review price policies=94, enhance
access, support local drug production and strengthen laboratory capacity.

German officials said the draft communiqu=E9 might be revised before the
summit.