WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONIP/C/W/132/Add.3
6 May 1999
(99-1843)
Council for Trade-Related Aspects
of Intellectual Property RightsOriginal:  English
IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTICLE  66.2:  INFORMATION FROM
DEVELOPED COUNTRY MEMBERS
Addendum
AUSTRALIA
The present document reproduces the information on the implementation of Article 66.2 of
the TRIPS Agreement, which has been received from the Permanent Mission of Australia by means of
a communication, dated 21 April 1999.
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1. Developed country Members have undertaken to provide information regarding their
activities relevant to Article 66.2 of the Agreement, namely, the provision of incentives to enterprisesand institutions in their territory, to promote and encourage technology transfer to least-developed
country (LLDC) Members, in order to help them to create a sound and viable technological base.
2. There are several Australian government agencies involved in the provision of incentives,
either directly or indirectly, for Australian enterpri ses and institutions to engage in activities involving
technology transfer to LLDCs.  Australia provides such incentives at the bilateral, regional and
multilateral levels, to contribute to the development of human capital, infrastructure and private sectorenterprise in LLDCs.  Due to geographical location, many Australian activities of relevance to Article
66.2 are focused on countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
3. The agency most actively involved in activities relevant to Article 66.2 is the Australian
international aid agency, AusAID.  AusAID’s extensive range of aid programs, many of whichcontain a large technology transfer component, are delivered via the provision of monetary incentives
to various Australian business enterprises, educational institutions and other organisations.  Australia
considers that the provision of money to enterprises and institutions not only qualifies as an incentive
to encourage and promote technology transfer to LLDCs for the purposes of Article 66.2, but is
possibly one of the most effective means of meeting the objectives of the Article.  As indicated by theattached table, and details of specific programmes provided below, a large portion of AusAID
activities is directed at education and training.  Australia considers that the education of LLDC
Member nationals at Australian universities and their training in the use and management of
technological equipment comprise two of the most effective means of transferring technology and
know-how to which Australia has access.  A detailed account (including table) of relevant AusAIDactivities and funding outlays is provided below.
4. There is a range of other Australian agencies which run programmes and projects that provide
incentives, either directly or indirectly, to Australian businesses and other institutions, to transfer
technology to LLDCs.  These organisations include: the Department of Industry, Science andResources (DISR), the Department of Defence, Austrade (agency responsible for assisting AustralianIP/C/W/132/Add.3
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and projects exporters) and various State government departments.  More detailed information on the
relevant activities of these organisations will be provided by Australia in due course.
AusAID activities relevant to Article 66.2
Bilateral Development Assistance
5. Some A$125 million will be spent on bilateral  development assistance activities through the
Australia aid program to least-developed countries in 1998/99.  The large majority of these activities
carry a technology transfer or investment incentive component.  However, only those activities, for
which technology transfer/investment incentive is a major component or the primary aim, have been
included in the figures provided in the attached table.
6. In 1997/98, some A$26 million was spent on such activities.  Estimated expenditure for
1998/99 is $24.4 million (or approximately 20% of total bilateral development assistance expenditure
to LLDCs).  Examples of activities for which technology transfer/investment incentive is a major
component or the primary aim follow:
Samoa - Trade and Investment Promotion (TIP) Unit Project
7. Australia will provide $1.6 million from 1996 to 2001 to strengthen the TIP Unit within the
Samoan Department of Trade, Commerce a nd Investment (DTCI).  The project will:
• strengthen the DTCI’s capacity to prepare pre-feasibility and design documentation
for projects in target sectors of the economy;
• assist with the identification of potential investors from within W.  Samoa and from
Australia, and other overseas countries;
• support the search for new export markets; and
• expand the local knowledge of possible sources for the country’s imports.
8. Australia will provide technical assistance and training to increase confidence in the activities
of the DTCI in promoting trade and investment by: increasing its capacity for in-depth financial and
economic analysis of the feasibility of investment proposals; improving its research capability in all
areas of marketing; and, assisting with the effective management of the project inputs, as well as themore effective coordination of the activities of the proposed TIPU with other agencies.
Laos – Houaphan Micro-hydropower Project9. The goal of this $410,000 project is to contribute to an improvement in living standards of the
community of the four villages of Ban Tao in Houaphan Province.  This will be achieved by allowing
local development priorities to be realised over the next ten years by providing micro-hydropower
systems to supply electricity for domestic, irrigation and commercial uses.
10. Major activities comprise:
• Procurement of necessary equipment from Australia and in Lao PDR.
• Training of local community representatives from all ethnic groups in the area to
manage properly the micro-hydropower system.IP/C/W/132/Add.3
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• Construction and installation of the micro-hydropower system and related electrical
infrastructure.
Radio Vanuatu Transmitter project11. The aim of this $4.9m project is to provide the people of Vanuatu with upgraded
communications facilities capable of providing educational programmes, community services, newsitems and essential components of the cyclone early warning system and disaster preparedness
throughout the islands of Vanuatu.  The works include site development, antennas, electronic
equipment and transmission stations in both th e capital, Port Vila, and the island of Santo.
Appropriate training will be provided on the use and maintenance of the new technology.
Eritrea – University of Asmara, College of Engineering
12. The goal of this project is to improve engineering competencies in Eritrea through an
increased supply of qualified engineers and improved skills of current engineers, provided by the
strengthened University of Asmara, College of Engineering.  $1,385,343 will be provided through two
agreements: one with the University of New South Wales, and one with the University of Asmara.
13. Project components include:
• Provision of short courses to retrain current engineers.
• Development of a certified diploma course to be conducted by the College of
Engineering.
• Development of sufficient Eritrean teachers to teach the Diploma Course and provide
academic and administrative leadership.
• Development of the infrastructure for the College of Engineering.
• Ensuring standards of competency are attained, applied and sustained.
• Provision of assistance with the establishment, operation and sustainability of
necessary learning facilities at the Library and Teaching Laboratories.
Cambodia - Cataract Training Project14. This one year $74,112 Cataract Training Project aims to provide comprehensive training,
including surgical training to five Cambodian Basic Eye Doctors (BEDs).
The doctors will be trained:
• in the surgical technique of high quality, high volume extracapasular cataract
extraction with intraocular lens implantation surgery (ECCE + IOL); and
• basic equipment maintenance.
15. Equipment to be provided includes 5 ophthalmic microscopes, 10 surgical instrument sets,
and a seed donation of 500 intraocular lenses and 250 sutures to allow ECCE + IOL to be performed
in five provincial eye units.  The project will provide technical and vocational training and contribute
to the development of Cambodian medical infrastructure and health care systems in a sustainable way.IP/C/W/132/Add.3
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Cambodia – Training of Eye Doctors and Nurses
16. This two year $200,000 project aims to train th ree Basic Eye Doctors (BEDs) and eight Basic
Eye Nurses (BENs) and supply appropriate technical equipment so as to establish medical eye
services in Prey Veng and Kompong Cham provinces.  Technology/equipment is chosen on the basis
of low maintenance and reliability.  The project targets severely disadvantaged people living inremote areas without access to medical services.  Primary health care training is also provided to field
staff who will visit remote areas and refer patients as required.
17. Medical eye services will be offered to 10,000 new patients.  Some 3,000 operations are
expected to be performed during 1999 and 2000, including those referred from isolated areas by field
workers in the Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) Programme.
Australian Development Scholarships
18. Training awards under the Australian De velopment Scholarships (ADS) program are
available to nominees from the public and private sectors in each of the LLDCs to which Australia
provides bilateral assistance.  Awards are determined annually.  The awards enable nominees toundertake under or post-graduate studies in developmentally relevant courses at an Australian
university or other tertiary education institution.  The ADS program is consistent with Australia’s
objective of reducing poverty through human resource development.
19. Priority sectors of study include engineering, environment and natural resources, aviation,
energy, computer and information technology, health, communications and education.
Regional and Multilateral Programmes
20. The Australian aid program also provides LLDCs with transfers of technology and investment
incentives through various regional and multilateral programmes.  While it is not possible to separate
out expenditure to LLDCs through these programmes, relevant regional LLDCs obviously benefit.
Regional Programmes
APEC Support Programme
21. A$6.8m has been spent on this project since it commenced in 1995.  Estimated expenditure
for 1998/99 is a further A$2.5m.  The objective of  the APEC Support Program is to support small,
high-impact requests from Australian Government departments and statutory  authorities for
assistance aimed at supporting developing member economy participation in Asia Pacific Economic
Cooperation (APEC).  The programme also aims to facilitate and strengthen links between other
Australian Government bodies and developing economies in the APEC region.  Priority funding under
this programme is given to activities that orig inate from the activities of APEC Working Groups or
other APEC entities and which directly assist APEC developing members to implement Bogor
commitments on trade and investment liberalisation and facilitation.
ASEAN-Australian Economic Cooperation Program (AAECP)
22. The AEECP consists of a Projects Stream and a Linkages Stream.  The current programme
aims to promote economic cooperation between AS EAN and Australia-based bodies, based on the
concept of mutual benefit, by promoting cooper ative and joint activities involving the private,
research, academic and government sectors in Australia and ASEAN.  The Linkages Stream also aimsIP/C/W/132/Add.3
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to promote ASEAN-Australia collaboration in technological development and human resource
development in the region.  AusAID expenditure on the AAECP in 1997/98 was A$4.5 million.
Estimated expenditure for 1998/99 is A$6.4 million.
Multilateral Programmes
International Atomic Energy Agency Support
23. Since 1991/92, AusAID has provided A$8.7 million as a core contribution to the Technical
Cooperation Fund (TCF) of the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).  The IAEA has a
research and development role, as well as the task of safeguarding the diversion of peaceful nuclear
facilities and materials to weapons production.  The TCF provides technical assistance and training to
developing countries in appropriate uses of nuclear technology in agriculture, industry and medicine.Between 1997/98 and 1999/2000, Australia will contribute $A1.7 million to fund a new IAEA project
entitled ‘ The Application of Radioscope Technology to Sustainable Infrastructure Development in
Asia and the Pacific’ .  The project covers infrastructure support in areas of public sector engineering,
strengthening radiation protection and regional education of nuclear medicine technologists.
24. The attached table details expenditure on transfers of technology to LLDCs through the
Australian aid program in 1997/98 and 1998/99.IP/C/W/132/Add.3
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EXPENDITURE ON TRANSFERS OF TECHNOLOGY TO LLDCs THROUGH THE AUSTRALIAN AID PROGRAMME IN 1997/98 AND 1998/99
Country Education
(Australian Development
Scholarships)Agriculture Health Water &
SanitationInvestment
PromotionPublic Sector
ManagementTelecomms Energy Total
1997/98 1998/99 1997/98 1998/99 1997/98 1998/99 1997/98 1998/99 1997/98 1998/99 1997/98 1998/99 1997/98 1998/99 1997/98 1998/99 1997/98 1998/99
South Asia
Bangladesh 2,456,333 2,367,023 2,456,333 2,367,023
Bhutan 436,552 548,958 436,552 548,958
Maldives 1,903,681 1,716,177 1,903,681 1,716,177
Nepal 2,199,610 1,970,498 2,199,610 1,970,498
South East
Asia
Cambodia 1,718,200 1,400,000 2,549,565 3,812,541 100,000 4,267,765 5,312,541
Laos 3,327,310 3,124,640 74,112 97,081 47,188 3,424,391 3,245,940
Burma 557,554 330,000 557,554 330,000
Africa
Eritrea 671,975 239,038 671,975 239,038
Ethiopia 474,965 155,076 474,965 155,076
Lesotho 213,711 83,015 213,711 83,015
Mozambique 210,738 433,599 210,738 433,599
Pacific
Kiribati 1,523,575 1,182,000 820,656 1,900,100 2,344,231 3,082,100
Samoa 2,347,063 1,648,000 11,800 48,243 722,136 207,547 3,080,999 1,903,790
Solomon
Islands1,226,631 1,129,037 365,000 385,000 188,000 1,591,631 1,702,037
Tuvalu 246,157 168,000 246,157 168,000
Vanuatu 1,464,577 1,185,000 15,724 1,464,577 1,200,724
Total 20,978,632 17,680,061 2,549,565 3,812,541 11,800 222,355 1,185,656 2,285,100 722,136 207,547 0 188,000 0 15,724 97,081 47,188 25,544,870 24 ,458,516
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