IP/C/R/TC/UNCTAD/1  
 
5 October  2020 
(20-6779)  Page: 1/8 
Council for Trade -Related Aspects  of 
Intellectual Property Rights  Original: English   
 
TECHNICAL COOPERATION ACTIVITIES:  
INFORMATION FROM  OTHER INTERGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS  
UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT (UNCTAD)  
At its meeting of 30 July  2020, the Council for TRIPS agreed to invite intergovernmental organization 
observers to the Council to update the information on their technical and financial cooperation 
programmes relating to the implementation of the TRIPS Agreement.  
 
The present document reproduces the information which has been  received from the United Nations 
Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)  by means of a communication dated 
22 September 2020 . 
 
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1  INTRODUCTION  
UNCTAD 's Work in the Area of Intellectual Property Rights and Development  
1.  The UNCTAD  Secretariat, through its Intellectual Property (IP) Unit, located within the Division 
on Investment and Enterprise, implements a work programme on the development dimensions of 
IP rights. The work programme is designed to respond to the mandate received f rom Members at 
the Ministerial Conference in Nairobi (July 2016), as well as to intergovernmental requests under 
the WIPO Development Agenda and the World Health Assembly 's Resolution 61.21 on a Global 
Strategy and Plan of Action on Public Health, Innovati on and Intellectual Property. It is partially 
funded by donor governments and institutions. Currently, the work programme targets technical 
assistance and capacity building in areas related to (1) local pharmaceutical production and its 
linkages with COVID -19 as well as anti -microbial resistance (AMR); (2) the Intellectual Property 
Protocol under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA); (3) the role of IP in technology 
and R&D partnerships, and (4) the role of IP in the digital economy.   
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- 2 - ANNEX1 
Name of programme or project  "AfCFTA  Implementation: Breaking Down Geographical, Logistical and Regulatory Barriers to Trade and 
Investment in the Horn to Boost Industrialisation: A Focus on the Pharmaceutical Industry "  
Date and end date  27 June 2019 - 28 June 2019  
Beneficiary Member(s) or observer(s)  Burundi; Djibouti; Ethiopia; Kenya; Somalia; South Africa; South Sudan; Sudan; Tanzania; Zimbabwe  
Brief description  This meeting was organized by the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) in the context of the AfCFTA 
implement ation process. UNCTAD was invited to contribute expertise on the following themes: •  Regulatory barriers to 
trade and investment in the horn of Africa and the role of regional economic cooperation; •  Investment, intellectual 
property and competition issues  under AfCFTA negotiation; and •  Services liberalization and their linkages with 
investment, intellectual property and competition.  
Beneficiary institution or audience  Policy makers and government officials  
Technical cooperation provider(s)  UNECA, UNCTAD  
Outputs or impact  UNCTAD contributed to increased awareness among policymakers of the interfaces of trade, investment and intellectual 
property in African regional integration.  
Website for further information  Not available  
Contact point f or further information  Christoph Spennemann, Officer -in-Charge, Intellectual Property Unit, UNCTAD  Christoph.Spennemann@unctad.org  
 
 
1 In English only .  
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- 3 - Name of programme or project  National Capacity Building Workshop on Technology Partnerships  and R&D Collaboration, Cairo, Egypt  
Date and end date  17 July 2019 - 18 July 2019  
Beneficiary Member(s) or observer(s)  Egypt  
Brief description  In the context of its work on the African Continental Free Trade Area ( AfCFTA), UNCTAD provides capacity building 
courses on the use of intellectual property rights in research and development agreements, IP licensing agreements and 
other voluntary technology partnerships between universities and the private sector. UNCTAD or ganized this workshop 
in Cairo jointly with the Egyptian Patent Office (EGYPO) and the Egyptian Academy of Scientific Research and Technology. 
The workshop focused on ways to enhance the Egyptian research and development (R&D) framework to boost the 
countr y's opportunities to trade in technology goods within the AfCFTA.  
Beneficiary institution or audience  Government representatives, universities and research institutions, private sector, civil society.  
Technical cooperation provider(s)  UNCTAD, Egyptian Patent Office, Egyptian Academy for Scientific Research and Technology.  
Outputs or impact  UNCTAD and t he Egyptian Patent Office have agreed on follow -up technical cooperation.  
Website for further information   
Contact point for further information  Christoph.Spennemann@un.org  
 
Name of programme or project  Assessing Regional Integration in Africa (ARIA IX): Next Steps for the African Continental Free Trade Area 
(AfCFTA), 2019  
Date and end date  18 July 2019 - 18 July 2019  
Beneficiary Member(s) or observer(s)   
Brief description  The report addresses investment, intellectual property, competition and e -commerce among others. The report 
underscored the opportunity presented by the AfCFTA to a balanced IP rights system that responds to the aspirations 
contained in the continental programmes. Fo llowing requests by AUC and UNECA, UNCTAD contributed the bulk of the 
IP chapter in the 2019 issue of this ARIA report, which provides guidelines for the IP Protocol negotiations scheduled to 
begin in 2020. The study reviews the status of intellectual prop erty norm setting in Africa, the international and regional 
framework, the experience of other regions and the mechanism to address Africa 's interest in the protection and 
utilization of traditional knowledge and genetic resources. UNCTAD also contributed to the elaboration of intellectual 
property issues under the chapter on E -Commerce and Integration in a Digitizing Africa.  
Beneficiary institution or audience  African countries and development partners.  
Technical cooperation provider(s)  Lead by UNECA, UNCTAD and AUC contributed to the preparation of the report.  
Outputs or impact  The report identifies priority areas for regional cooperation on IP rights, the interface between investment and intellectual  
property and e -commerce. The repor t will inform the negotiations of the AfCFTA Protocol on Intellectual Property Rights.  
Website for further information  https://www.uneca.org/publications/ass essing -regional -integration -africa -aria-ix  
Contact point for further information  Christoph.Spennemann@un.org   
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Name of programme or project  15th Annual WTO Workshop on Trade and Public Health  
Date and end date  11 November 2019 - 15 November 2019  
Beneficiary Member(s) or observer(s)  Afghanistan; Albania; Angola; Antigua and Barbuda; Argentina; Armenia; Australia; Austria; Kingdom of Bahrain; 
Bangladesh; Barbados; Belgium; Belize; Benin; Plurinational State of Bolivia; Botswana; Brazil; Brunei Darussalam; 
Bulgaria; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Cabo Verde; Cambodia; Cameroon; Canada; Central African Republic; Chad; Chile; 
China; Colombia; Congo; Costa Rica; Côte d 'Ivoire; Croatia; Cuba; Cyprus; Czech Republic; Democratic Republic of the 
Congo; Denmark; Djibouti; Dominica; Dominican Republic; Ecuador; Egypt; El Salvador; Estonia; Eswatini; European 
Union; Fiji; Finland; France; Gabon; The Gambia; Georgia; Germany; Ghana; Greece; Grenada; G uatemala; Guinea; 
Guinea -Bissau; Guyana; Haiti; Honduras; Hong Kong, China; Hungary; Iceland; India; Indonesia; Ireland; Israel; Italy; 
Jamaica; Japan; Jordan; Kazakhstan; Kenya; Republic of Korea; the State of Kuwait; Kyrgyz Republic; Lao People 's 
Democra tic Republic; Latvia; Lesotho; Liberia; Liechtenstein; Lithuania; Luxembourg; Macao, China; Madagascar; 
Malawi; Malaysia; Maldives; Mali; Malta; Mauritania; Mauritius; Mexico; Republic of Moldova; Mongolia; Montenegro; 
Morocco; Mozambique; Myanmar; Namibia ; Nepal; Netherlands; New Zealand; Nicaragua; Niger; Nigeria; North 
Macedonia; Norway; Oman; Pakistan; Panama; Papua New Guinea; Paraguay; Peru; Philippines; Poland; Portugal; 
Qatar; Romania; Russian Federation; Rwanda; Saint Kitts and Nevis; Saint Lucia; Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; 
Samoa; Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; Senegal; Seychelles; Sierra Leone; Singapore; Slovak Republic; Slovenia; Solomon 
Islands; South Africa; Spain; Sri Lanka; Suriname; Sweden; Switzerland; The Separate Customs Territory of Tai wan, 
Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu; Tajikistan; Tanzania; Thailand; Togo; Tonga; Trinidad and Tobago; Tunisia; Turkey; 
Uganda; Ukraine; United Arab Emirates; United Kingdom; United States of America; Uruguay; Vanuatu; Bolivarian 
Republic of Venezuela; Viet Nam;  Yemen; Zambia; Zimbabwe  
Brief description  UNCTAD regularly contributes to this workshop, especially its expertise in intellectual property and local pharmaceutical 
production.  
Beneficiary institution or audience  Government officials of WTO Members.  
Technical cooperation provider(s)  WTO, UNCTAD, etc.  
Outputs or impact  UNCTAD discussed a case study on local pharmaceutical production policies, including technical issues related to 
intellectual property and innovation, tariff protection and domestic dru g regulatory measures. The objective was to 
demonstrate the extent to which the promotion of pharmaceutical production cuts across various policy areas and 
requires policy coherence. The case study was based on UNCTAD 's "Tool Box for Policy Coherence in Ac cess to Medicines 
and Local Pharmaceutical Production ", New York and Geneva, 2018 (available at 
https://unctad.org/en/PublicationsLibrary/diaepcb2017d2_en.pdf ).  
Website for fu rther information  https://unctad.org/en/Pages/DIAE/Intellectual -Property.aspx   
Contact point for further information  Christoph.Spennemann@unctad.org  
  
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- 5 - Name of programme or project  "Towards a Common Investment Area in the African Continental Free Trade Area: Policy Options Towards 
Levelling the Playing Field for Intra -African Investment ".  
Date and end date  10 December 2019 - 10 December 2019  
Beneficiary Member(s) or observer(s)  Angola; Benin; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Central African Republic; Chad; Comoros; Democratic Republic of the Congo; 
Djibouti; Ethiopia; The Gambia; Guinea; Guinea -Bissau; Lesotho; Liberia; Madagascar; Malawi; Mali; Mauritania; 
Mozambique; Niger; Rwanda; Sao Tomé and Principe; Senegal; Sierra Leone; Somalia; South Sudan; Sudan; Tanzania; 
Togo; Uganda; Zambia  
Brief description  The UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) organized this Expert Group Meeting. UNECA invited UNCTAD to 
contribute expertise on investment and intellectual property for the review of the initial draft study on "Towards a 
Common Investment Area in the Afric an Continental Free Trade Area: Policy Options Towards Levelling the Playing Field 
for Intra -African Investment ". 
Beneficiary institution or audience  African policymakers and government officials  
Technical cooperation provider(s)  UNECA, UNCTAD  
Outputs or impact  Based on its previous contribution, UNCTAD has been invited to provide further IP and investment -related expertise to 
a second draft of the study during a virtual expert meeting on 17 and 18 September 2020. The final study will inform 
the negotiations of the AfCFTA Protocol on IP.  
Website for further information  Not yet available  
Contact point for further information  Christoph Spennemann, Officer -in-Charge, Intellectual Property Unit, UNCTAD Christoph.Spennemann@unctad.org  
 
Name of programme or project  UNECA Committee on Private Sector Development, Regional Integration, Trade, Infrastructure, Industry and 
Technology  
Date and end date  11 December 2019 - 12 December 2019  
Beneficiary Member(s) or observer(s)  Angola; Benin; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Central African Republic; Chad; Comoros; Democratic Republic of the Congo; 
Djibouti; Ethiopia; The Gambia; Guinea; Guinea -Bissau; Lesotho; Liberia; Madagascar; Malawi; Mali; Maurita nia; 
Mozambique; Niger; Rwanda; Sao Tomé and Principe; Senegal; Sierra Leone; Somalia; South Sudan; Sudan; Tanzania; 
Togo; Uganda; Zambia  
Brief description  UNCTAD was invited by UNECA to contribute to a discussion on regional trade integration and develop ment in Africa.  
Beneficiary institution or audience  AfCFTA government officials and private sector  
Technical cooperation provider(s)  UNECA, UNCTAD  
Outputs or impact  The discussion raised awareness of AfCFTA policymakers and private sector of the implic ations of the AfCFTA for regional 
trade and private sector development.  
Website for further information  https://www.uneca.org/1st -session -committee -private -sector -development  
Contact point for further information  Christoph Spennemann, Officer -in-Charge, Intellectual Propert y Unit, UNCTAD Christoph.Spennemann@unctad.org   
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Name of programme or project  Webinar: "Investment in quality local production to address supply bottlenecks related to the pandemic " 
Date and end date 23 April 2020 - 23 April 2020  
Beneficiary Member(s) or observer(s)  Afghanistan; Albania; Angola; Antigua and Barbuda; Argentina; Armenia; Australia; Austria; Kingdom of Bahrain; 
Bangladesh; Barbados; Belgium; Belize; Benin; Plurinational State of Bol ivia; Botswana; Brazil; Brunei Darussalam; 
Bulgaria; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Cabo Verde; Cambodia; Cameroon; Canada; Central African Republic; Chad; Chile; 
China; Colombia; Congo; Costa Rica; Côte d 'Ivoire; Croatia; Cuba; Cyprus; Czech Republic; Democratic Republic of 
the Congo; Denmark; Djibouti; Dominica; Dominican Republic; Ecuador; Egypt; El Salvador; Estonia; Eswatini; 
European Union; Fiji; Finland; France; Gabon; The Gambia; Georgia; Germany; Ghana; Greece; Grenada; Guatemala; 
Guinea; Guinea -Bissau; Gu yana; Haiti; Honduras; Hong Kong, China; Hungary; Iceland; India; Indonesia; Ireland; 
Israel; Italy; Jamaica; Japan; Jordan; Kazakhstan; Kenya; Republic of Korea; the State of Kuwait; Kyrgyz Republic; 
Lao People 's Democratic Republic; Latvia; Lesotho; Libe ria; Liechtenstein; Lithuania; Luxembourg; Macao, China; 
Madagascar; Malawi; Malaysia; Maldives; Mali; Malta; Mauritania; Mauritius; Mexico; Republic of Moldova; Mongolia; 
Montenegro; Morocco; Mozambique; Myanmar; Namibia; Nepal; Netherlands; New Zealand; Nicaragua; Niger; Nigeria; 
North Macedonia; Norway; Oman; Pakistan; Panama; Papua New Guinea; Paraguay; Peru; Philippines; Poland; 
Portugal; Qatar; Romania; Russian Federation; Rwanda; Saint Kitts and Nevis; Saint Lucia; Saint Vincent and the 
Grenadines; S amoa; Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; Senegal; Seychelles; Sierra Leone; Singapore; Slovak Republic; 
Slovenia; Solomon Islands; South Africa; Spain; Sri Lanka; Suriname; Sweden; Switzerland; The Separate Customs 
Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu; Taji kistan; Tanzania; Thailand; Togo; Tonga; Trinidad and Tobago; 
Tunisia; Turkey; Uganda; Ukraine; United Arab Emirates; United Kingdom; United States of America; Uruguay; 
Vanuatu; Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela; Viet Nam; Yemen; Zambia; Zimbabwe  
Brief des cription  UNCTAD and WHO on 23 April 2020 organized a webinar on investment in quality local production to address supply 
bottlenecks related to the Covid -19 pandemic and beyond. The event, which was attended by 127  participants, 
emphasized the need to incr ease pandemic preparedness in developing countries through, inter alia , increased local 
pharmaceutical production.  
Beneficiary institution or audience  Developing country policymakers and Geneva -based delegates  
Technical cooperation provider(s)  UNCTAD, WHO  
Outputs or impact  UNCTAD relied on the discussions and recommendations of this webinar to publish a policy paper on "Ten Actions to 
Boost Low and Middle -Income Countries ' Productive Capacity for Medicines ". 
Website for further inf ormation  https://unctad.org/en/pages/MeetingDetails.aspx?meetingid=2418   
Contact point for further information  Christoph Spennemann, Officer -in-Charge, Intellectual Property Un it, UNCTAD Christoph.Spennemann@unctad.org  
  
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- 7 - Name of programme or project  Webinar: "Who owns our data? What is the role of intellectual property? "  
Date and end date  29 April 2020 - 29 April 2020  
Beneficiary Member(s) or observer(s)  Afghanistan; Albania; Angola; Antigua and Barbuda; Argentina; Armenia; Australia; Austria; Kingdom of Bahrain; 
Bangladesh; Barbados; Belgium; Belize; Benin; Plurinational State of Bolivia; Botswana; Brazil; Brunei Darus salam; 
Bulgaria; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Cabo Verde; Cambodia; Cameroon; Canada; Central African Republic; Chad; Chile; 
China; Colombia; Congo; Costa Rica; Côte d 'Ivoire; Croatia; Cuba; Cyprus; Czech Republic; Democratic Republic of the 
Congo; Denmark; Djib outi; Dominica; Dominican Republic; Ecuador; Egypt; El Salvador; Estonia; Eswatini; European 
Union; Fiji; Finland; France; Gabon; The Gambia; Georgia; Germany; Ghana; Greece; Grenada; Guatemala; Guinea; 
Guinea -Bissau; Guyana; Haiti; Honduras; Hong Kong, Ch ina; Hungary; Iceland; India; Indonesia; Ireland; Israel; Italy; 
Jamaica; Japan; Jordan; Kazakhstan; Kenya; Republic of Korea; the State of Kuwait; Kyrgyz Republic; Lao People 's 
Democratic Republic; Latvia; Lesotho; Liberia; Liechtenstein; Lithuania; Luxem bourg; Macao, China; Madagascar; Malawi; 
Malaysia; Maldives; Mali; Malta; Mauritania; Mauritius; Mexico; Republic of Moldova; Mongolia; Montenegro; Morocco; 
Mozambique; Myanmar; Namibia; Nepal; Netherlands; New Zealand; Nicaragua; Niger; Nigeria; North Mac edonia; 
Norway; Oman; Pakistan; Panama; Papua New Guinea; Paraguay; Peru; Philippines; Poland; Portugal; Qatar; Romania; 
Russian Federation; Rwanda; Saint Kitts and Nevis; Saint Lucia; Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; Samoa; Kingdom of 
Saudi Arabia; Seneg al; Seychelles; Sierra Leone; Singapore; Slovak Republic; Slovenia; Solomon Islands; South Africa; 
Spain; Sri Lanka; Suriname; Sweden; Switzerland; The Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu; 
Tajikistan; Tanzania; Thailand; Togo; To nga; Trinidad and Tobago; Tunisia; Turkey; Uganda; Ukraine; United Arab 
Emirates; United Kingdom; United States of America; Uruguay; Vanuatu; Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela; Viet Nam; 
Yemen; Zambia; Zimbabwe  
Brief description  As the importance of data f or innovation, productivity and talking global challenges, such as in food and agriculture, climate 
change and industrialization, grows, the governance for the control, access and sharing of data became crucial. This 
webinar, which was part of UNCTAD 's e-commerce week 2020, hosted international experts on data and intellectual 
property rights to address the key bottlenecks for data sharing and the role of intellectual property rights.  
Beneficiary institution or audience  Geneva delegates, national and regi onal policymakers, private sector.  
Technical cooperation provider(s)  UNCTAD, WIPO, South Centre  
Outputs or impact  The webinar contributed to increased awareness of webinar participants of the role of IP rights in promoting the sharing of 
data.  
Website for further information  https://unctad.org/meetings/en/SessionalDocuments/DTL_STICT_2020.11.05_eWeek2020finalsummaryreport_en. pdf   
Contact point for further information  Christoph Spennemann, Officer -in-Charge, Intellectual Property Unit, UNCTAD  Christoph.Spennemann@unctad.org  
  
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- 8 - Name of programme or project  "Ten Actions to Boost Low and Middle -Income Countries ' Productive Capacity for Medicines " UNCTAD paper, 
27 May 2020.  
Date and end date  27 May 2020 - 27 May 2020  
Beneficiary Member(s) or observer(s)  Albania; Algeria; Antigua and Barbuda; Argentina; Armenia; Azerbaijan; Bahamas; Kingdom of Bahrain; Barbados; 
Belarus; Belize; Plurinational State of Bolivia; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Botswana; Brazil; Brunei Darussalam; Cabo 
Verde; Cameroon; Chile; China; Colombia; Congo; Costa Rica; Côte d 'Ivoire; Cuba; Curaçao; Dominica; Dominican 
Republic; Ecuador; Egypt; El Salvador; Equatorial Guinea; Eswatini; Fiji; Gabon; Georgia; Ghana; Grenada; Guatemala; 
Guyana; Honduras; Hong Kong, China; India; Indonesia; Iran; Iraq; Israel; Jamaica; Jordan; Kazakhstan; Kenya; 
Republic of Korea; the State of Kuwait; Kyrgyz Republic; Lebanese Republic; Libya; Macao, China; Malaysia; Maldives; 
Mauritius; Mexico; Republic of Moldova; Mongolia; Montenegro; Morocco; Namibia; Nicaragua; Nigeria; North Macedonia; 
Oman; Pakistan; Panama ; Papua New Guinea; Paraguay; Peru; Philippines; Qatar; Russian Federation; Saint Kitts and 
Nevis; Saint Lucia; Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; Samoa; Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; Serbia; Seychelles; Singapore; 
South Africa; Sri Lanka; Suriname; Syrian Arab Republic; The Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen 
and Matsu; Tajikistan; Thailand; Tonga; Trinidad and Tobago; Tunisia; Turkey; Ukraine; United Arab Emirates; Uruguay; 
Uzbekistan; Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela; Viet Nam; Zimbabwe  
Brief  description  The paper recommends ten actions to ensure low - and middle -income countries ' equitable access to Covid -19-related 
products, focusing on technology partnerships between LMIC governments, local pharmaceutical producers, foreign 
investors and dev elopment partners.  
Beneficiary institution or audience  LMIC policymakers, development partners  
Technical cooperation provider(s)  UNCTAD  
Outputs or impact  Increased awareness among developing country policymakers of the potential of IP and investment policies for 
technology partnerships to address Covid -19.  
Website for further information  https://healthpolicy -watch.org/ten -actions -to-boost -lmics-productive -capacity -for-medicines  
Contact point for further information  Christoph Spennemann, Officer -in-Charge, Intellectual Property Unit, UNCTAD  Christoph.Spennemann@unctad.org  
 
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