The Chair of the Working Group, Ambassador Sofia Boza Martinez of Chile, noted the growing interest in technology transfer among members in various bodies within the WTO. She thanked members for translating their interest in technology transfer into action.
At the meeting, members discussed proposals from the African Group and the United Kingdom. The African Group’s proposal was on the role of the transfer of technology in building resilience. Egypt, on behalf of the African Group, recommended restructuring the Working Group’s agenda to address the specific topics listed in the proposal, including the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, trade facilitation, agricultural resilience and climate change. The communication from the United Kingdom, on intellectual property and voluntary licensing, explored improving future pandemic preparedness and equitable access to health products by facilitating voluntary licensing and technology transfer partnerships between developed and developing countries.
A third paper was introduced by India on the relationship between trade and the transfer of environmentally sound technologies to developing countries to address climate change. The proposal was shared a few days prior to the meeting and will be discussed at the next meeting of the Working Group.
In closing, Ambassador Boza Martinez said: “There is appetite and interest in discussing technology transfer, and we could already see convergence on some of the ideas that had been discussed, including the participation of external stakeholders to inform our deliberations, or increasing the cooperation with other WTO bodies, including through joint sessions, and even structuring and planning activities in a work programme, which would help organize more efficiently future activities.”
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