RESTRICTED  
  
IP/C/M/95  
 
5 August 2020  
(20-5420) Page: 1/10 
Council for Trade -Related Aspects of  
Intellectual Property Rights   
 
MINUTES OF MEETING  
HELD IN THE CENTRE WILLIAM RAPPARD ON 30 JU LY 2020 
Chair: H.E. Ambassador Xolelwa Mlumbi -Peter 
The present document contains the record of the meeting of the Council for TRIPS held on 
30 July 2020. The statements made during the meeting will be circulated in an addendum to the 
present document.  
Table of Contents  
1   ELECTION OF CHAIRPERSON  ................................ ................................ .......................  3 
2   NOTIFICATIONS UNDER PROVISIONS OF THE AGREEMENT  ................................ ........  3 
3   IP MEASURES IN THE CONTEXT OF COVID -19 ................................ .............................  5 
4   REVIEW OF NATIONAL IMPLEMENTING LEGISLATION  ................................ ................  5 
5   REVIEW OF THE PROVISIONS OF ARTICLE 27.3(B)  ................................ .....................  5 
6   RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE TRIPS AGREEMENT AND THE CONVENTION ON 
BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY  ................................ ................................ ................................ .. 5 
7   PROTECTION OF TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND FOLKLORE  ................................ ..... 5 
8   NON-VIOLATION AND SITUATION COMPLAINTS  ................................ .........................  6 
9   REVIEW OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE TRIPS AGREEMENT UNDER 
ARTICLE 71.1  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................  6 
10   REVIEW OF THE APPLICATION OF THE PROVISIONS OF THE SECTION ON 
GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS UNDER ARTICLE 24.2  ................................ ......................  7 
11   TECHNICAL COOPERATION AND CAPACITY BUILDING  ................................ ..............  7 
12   LDC GROUP PROPOSA L ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTICLE 66.2 OF THE 
TRIPS AGREEMENT  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...........  8 
13   INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND THE 1998 WORK PROGRAMME ON 
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE  ................................ ................................ ................................ .. 8 
14   INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND PUBLIC INTEREST: BEYOND ACCESS TO 
MEDICINES AND MEDICAL TECHNOLOGIES TOWARDS A MORE HOLISTIC 
APPROACH TO TRIPS FLEXIBILITIES  ................................ ................................ ...............  8 
15   INFORMATION ON RELEVANT DEVELOPMENTS ELSEWHERE IN THE WTO  .................  8 
15.1   Dispute Settlement Developments Relevant to the TRIPS Agreement  ....................  8 
15.2   TRIPS Amendment  ................................ ................................ ................................ . 9 
15.3   IPR-Related Issues in Trade Policy Reviews and the Director -General's 
Monitoring Reports  ................................ ................................ ................................ ..........  9 
16   OBSERVER STATUS FOR INTERNATIONAL INTERGOVERNMENTAL 
ORGANIZATIONS  ................................ ................................ ................................ .............  9 
17   OTHER BUSINESS  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...... 9 IP/C/M/9 5 
 
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  17.1   Annual Review of the Special Compulsory Licensing System  ................................ .. 9 
17.2   18th Annual Review under Paragraph 2 of the Decision on the 
"Impl ementation of Article 66.2 of the TRIPS Agreement"  ................................ ............  10 
17.3   Other Planned Activities for the Benefit of LDCs  ................................ ..................  10 
17.4   Date of Next Meeting  ................................ ................................ ............................  10 
  IP/C/M/9 5 
 
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  1  ELECTION OF CHAIRPERSON  
1.  A representative of the Secretariat  recalled that, when the TRIPS Council had met on 
6 February  2020, the General Council had not yet agree d on a slate of names of  chairpersons for 
WTO bodies. At that time, the Council for TRIPS could not, therefore, elect its Chairperson for 2020. 
For that reason, the Council had agreed to elect its new Chairperson at the beginning of the present 
meeting, with the understanding tha t, as soon as the General Council had agreed on the slate of 
names for Chairpersons, the Chair -designate would take up her role and hold consultations in 
preparation of this meeting, pending the formal election.  
2.  At the meeting that had taken place on 3 Mar ch 2020, the General Council had noted the 
consensus on the slate of names for chairpersons for WTO bodies. On the basis of the understanding 
reached by the General Council, he proposed that the TRIPS Council elect 
H.E. Ambassador  Xolelwa  Mlumbi -Peter, from South Africa , as its Chairperson for the coming year.  
3.  The Council so agreed . 
2  NOTIFICATIONS UNDER PROVISIONS OF THE AGREEMENT  
4.  The Chair invited the Secretariat to report on notifications that the Council had re ceived since its 
meeting in  Februa ry 2020 .  
5.  A representative of the Secretariat  said that  the Council had received the following notifications 
under Article 63.2 of the TRIPS Agreement:  
a. The European Union  had notified regulations relating to the implementation of the Regulation 
on the European Union Trademark; and a Regulation and a Council Decision relating to the 
European Union 's accession to the Geneva Act of the Lisbon Agreement on Appellations of 
Origin and Geographical Indications;  
b. Japan  had notified consolidated versions of its Design Act, its Patent Act, its Trademark Act 
and its Copyright Act;  
c. Mexico  had notified its declaration of protection of the denomination of origin "Pluma ";  
d. the Kyrgyz Repub lic had notified government decrees, regulations and rules relating to 
traditional knowledge, and to patenting rules for selection achievements, electronic computer 
programs and databases;  
e. Chinese Taipei  had notified its Trade Secrets Act;  
f. Canada  had notified its Bill-13, providing for certain measures in response to COVID -19;  
g. Thailand  had notified consolidated versions of its Trade Secrets Act, the Copyright Act and 
the Trademark Act ;   
h. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia  had notified its amended Copyright Law an d related 
implementing regulations ; 
i. Hungary  had notified a government decree on public health compulsory licences and 
transitional rules regarding epidemiological preparedness ; and  
j. Hong Kong, China  had notified an amended trademark Ordinance and its Nation al Anthem 
Ordinance of 2020.  
6.  He added that, u nder Article 69 , Belize , Qatar , the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , and Tonga  had 
provided information on contact points for the exchange of information and cooperation on trade in 
infringing goods , under Article 69  of the TRIPS Agreement .  IP/C/M/9 5 
 
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  7.  Chile had notified a contact point for technical and financial cooperation , under Article 67 of the 
TRIPS Agreement.  
8.  He noted  that some of the above -mentioned notifications were included in the list of IP -related 
COVID -19 measures. This non -exhaustive list of intellectual property measures was compiled and 
maintained by the WTO Secretariat from official sources and from Member 's inputs. The most recent 
inputs were from Greece , Switzerland and the Russia n Federation . The list was updated continuously, 
and the most recent version could always be accessed on the WTO website. It represented an 
informal situation report and an attempt to provide transparency with respect to measures related 
to intellectual property right s (IPRs) taken in the context of the COVID -19 crisis.1 
9.  He drew delegations ' attention to two developments in the area of documentation procedures:  
a. A new document series ha d been created for the circulation of Members ' reports to the TRIPS 
Council. The IP/ C/R/[MEMBER]/ - series would comprise  reports and reviews submitted by 
individual Members to the TRIPS Council , from 2020 onwards. This include d reports and 
responses relating to geographical indications (TRIPS Article 24.2), biotech patenting and 
related i ssues (TRIPS Article 27.3(b)), incentives for technology transfer (TRIPS Article 
66.2), and technical cooperation (TRIPS Article 67) ; and  
b. The WTO Secretariat 's Central Registry of Notifications (CRN) sen ds out annual reminders to 
Members identifying unfulf illed annual notification obligations across all WTO Agreements. 
In the context of TRIPS, the notification obligations under Article 63.2, 67, and 69 – namely 
to notify legislation, responses to the enforcement checklist and information on contact 
points  – were on-going obligations , which require d action whenever new legislation enter ed 
into force, or when the contact point details change d. In light of this, CRN reminders w ould 
now be sent to all Members covered by these obligations , indicating that these notification 
obligations appl ied "as appropriate ". By sending such regular reminders, CRN invite d 
Members covered by these provisions to regularly verify that they are up -to-date with their 
ongoi ng notification obligations under Article 6 3.2, Article 67 and Article 69.  
10.  The Chair invited delegations that had notified new or revised legislative measure s or submitted 
updates  to their Enforcement Checklist to inform the Council about the key points of  their 
notification s. This had become a well -established practice, followed by many delegations at recent 
sessions of the Council. It provided valuable insight into the notifications provided and promotes 
awareness and transparency.  
11.  The representatives of  Australia ; Canada ; the European Union ; South Africa ; Chinese Taipei ; 
Thailand ; Japan ; the Kingdom  of Saudi Arabia ; and Mexico  took the floor.  The representative of 
Hong Kong, China  requested  that his statement be included in the record  of the meeting . 
12.  The Chair noted that , while the pace of notifications to the Council had increased in recent years, 
they were still not keeping up with the actual development of laws and regulations relating to TRIPS. 
She recalled that Article 63.2 was not a one -off requirement. It was a core element of the TRIPS 
transparency arrangements, and a central part of the Council 's substantive work. It obliged Members 
to notify any new or amended laws in the area of TRIPS, incl uding those recently adopted to address 
the COVID -19 pandemic. That requirement included the notification of legislative changes made to 
implement the special compulsory licensing system to export medicines covered by the new 
Article  31bis of the TRIPS Agreement. The notification of all relevant laws and regulations could assist 
Members in preparing for the potential use of the system. It would also help the Secretariat in its 
efforts to provide informed technical support to Members in this  area. She urged Members to 
complete any outstanding initial notifications and to keep up to date with notifications on subsequent 
amendments. The same applied to the Checklist of Issues on Enforcement which had been 
established by the Council as an elemen t of Members ' notification obligations.  
13.  Finally, the e -TRIPS Submission System was available for Members to notify their laws, and to 
make other required submissions to the TRIPS Council, through the click of a button. The e-TRIPS 
System not only facilita ted the submission of information by Members , it also permitted  digital 
 
1 See https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/covid19_e/trade_related_ip_measure_e.htm  IP/C/M/9 5 
 
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  access, consultation and analysis of this information through the e -TRIPS Gateway, an easy -to use 
interface to search and display information related to the TRIPS Council.  
14.  The Council took note  of the notifications and the statements made.  
3  IP MEASURES IN THE CONTEXT OF COVID -19 
15.  The Chair said that the item had been put on the agenda at the request of South Africa , referring 
to the document "COVID -19: Measures Regarding Trade -Related Intellectual Property Rights ", which 
was available from the WTO website and contained a non -exhaustive list  of IP-related measures 
taken in the context of COVID -19. The list  compiled by the Secretariat from official sources and 
verified by the Members concerned. It was updated continuously, and the latest version was always 
available on the WTO website.2 She invited South Africa to introduce the item.  
16.  The representative of South Africa  took the floor  to introduce the item . 
17.  The representatives of Nigeria ; Brazil ; China ; Chile; India; El Salvador ; the Russian Federation ; 
Indonesia ; Ecuador ; the United States of America ; the European Union ; Australia ; and Switzerland  
took the floor.  
18.  The Council took note  of the statements made.  
4  REVIEW  OF NATIONAL IMPLEMENTING LEGISLATION  
19.  The Chair recalled that the Council had been preparing for the review of the nation al 
implementing legislation of Samoa. The Secretariat had been in contact with the delegation of Samoa 
regarding the submission of their remaining notifications. She proposed that the Council schedule 
arrangements for Samoa 's review once the remaining noti fications are received.  
20.  She noted that the Council 's monitoring function under Article 68 of the TRIPS Agreement was 
a continuous task. Therefore, Members should feel free to revert to any matter stemming from 
previous reviews, or to seek further information on implementation of the Agreement in future.  
21.  The Council  took note  of the information provided  and agreed  to schedule  the arrangements for 
the review of Samoa 's national implementation legislation as proposed by the Chair . 
5  REVIEW OF THE PROVISIONS OF ARTICLE 27.3(B)  
6  RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE TRIPS AGRE EMENT AND THE CONVENTION ON 
BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY  
7  PROTECTION OF TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND FOLKLORE  
22.  The Chair proposed  that, following past practice, agenda items 5, 6 and 7 be addressed together.  
She recalled  that there had been important developments in this area in many WTO Members that 
have not been shared with this Council. So far, only 27 Members h ad responded to the List of 
Questions on Article 27.3(b), with Mexico and Ukraine being the most recent submi ssions. Two 
long-standing procedural issues under these items ha d been discussed extensively on the record, at 
every regular meeting of the Council for almost ten years now:  
a. The suggestion for the Secretariat to update the three factual notes on the Counci l's 
discussions on the TRIPS and CBD and related items; these notes had been  initially prepared 
in 2002 and last updated in 2006; and  
b. the request to invite the CBD Secretariat to brief the Council on the Nagoya Protocol to the 
CBD, initially proposed in Oc tober 2010.  
23.  Delegations ' positions on these issues were well known and already extensively recorded in the 
Council 's minutes. Considering that the agenda was  particularly full for the present  one-day meeting, 
 
2 See https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/covid19_e/trade_related_ip_measure_e.htm  IP/C/M/9 5 
 
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  she strongly suggest ed that delegations focus t heir interventions on suggestions on how to resolve 
the differences and make progress on the substantive issues.  Existing positions were very well known 
and were very clearly on the record, so there was no need to reiterate them.  
24.  The representatives of Brazil; Tanzania, on behalf of the African Group ; Bangladesh ; 
South  Africa ; Zimbabwe ; China ; India; Nigeria ; Kenya ; Switzerland ; Indonesia ; Canada ; the 
United  States of America ; the European Union ; and Japan  took the floor  
25.  The C ouncil took note of the statements made and agree d to revert to the matters at its next 
meeting.  
8  NON-VIOLATION AND SITUATION COMPLAINTS  
26.  The Chair recalled the General Council decision of 10 December 2019, in which Members had 
decided to extend the Moratorium on TRIPS non -violation and situation complaints until the 
12th Ministerial Conference  (MC12) . In line with the original mandate, th at decision  had instructed 
the TRIPS Council to "continue its examination of the scope and modalities " for such complaints "and 
make recommendations to the 12th Ministerial Conference. "  
27.  In the discussions  that had taken place  in December  2019, many delegations  had emphasized 
the need for a more detailed discussion on TRIPS non -violation, so that Ministers c ould take a 
well-informed decision on scope and modalities at MC12. Most delegations ha d also said that they 
were open to engage constructively and discuss concrete proposal s for scope and modalities.  
28.  Against the background of the postponement of MC12, she was hopeful that Members were 
willing to use the additional time available to return  to a substantive discussion of the issues. She 
had gone over the state of discussions in her preparations for th e present  meeting  and her  impression  
was that a number of shared understandings regarding TRIPS non -violation could in fact be 
harvested from t he past discussions. This might enable the Council  to focus  its engagement on 
formulating the areas of disagreement ; and, thus make at least some progress in framing the 
questions for ministers at MC12.  
29.  Some delegations ha d indicated their willingness to m ake submissions in this regard to provide 
a basis for constructive discussions . She  encourage d those delegations to do that soon , in order  to 
make best use of the time available. The existing positions were very well known and very clearly 
on the record, s o there was no need to reiterate the m. She invited Members to share their  views on 
how to approach TRIPS non -violation discussions between the present meeting  and MC12.  
30.  The representatives of Brazil ; Tanzania, on behalf of the African Group ; Bangladesh ; Nigeria ; 
India; Thailand ; China ; Argentina ; Chile; Zimbabwe ; Switzerland ; Canada ; the 
United  States  of America ; Indonesia ; the European Union ; and, Jamaica , on behalf of the ACP  Group  
took the floor.  The representative s of Kenya  and South Afric a requested that their respective  
statement s be included in the record  of the meeting . 
31.  The Council so  took note  of the statements made  and agreed  to revert to the matters at its next 
meeting .  
9  REVIEW OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE TRIPS AGREEMENT UNDER ARTICLE 71.1  
32.  The Chair recalled that Article 71.1 required the TRIPS Council to conduct a review once every 
two years. However, as the Council had not completed its initial review in 1999, no subsequent 
review had been initiated since then. Former Chair persons of the TRIPS Council had often highlighted 
the fact that there were a few long -standing review items on the agenda of the TRIPS Council under 
which there had been little or no activity for a number of years now.  
33.  There had been notable interest among d elegations in discussing intellectual property law and 
policy matters relevant to TRIPS, for instance in the context of Trade Policy Reviews. Such 
discussions could easily find a regular home under the broad mandate of the "Review of the 
Implementation of the TRIPS Agreement under Article 71.1 ". She had raised this issue with 
delegations during her informal consultations on 16 May 2020 and  had invited them to reflect on 
how to make better use of this agenda item. Revitalizing the mandated reviews of the TRIPS Council IP/C/M/9 5 
 
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  could be very useful for Members to share information and experiences in implementing the 
TRIPS  Agreement.  
34.  The Council agreed  to revert  to the matter at its next meeting.  
10  REVIEW OF THE APPLICATION OF THE PROVISIONS OF THE SECT ION ON 
GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS UNDER ARTICLE 24.2  
35.  The Chair said that Article 24.2 of the TRIPS Agreement required the Council to keep under 
review the application of the provisions on geographical indications  (GIs). The principal tool used for 
the review  was the Checklist of Questions (IP/C/13 and Add.1). She recalled that, of the 164 
WTO Members, fewer than 50 had responded to the Checklist. Many of the earlier responses were 
also likely to be outdated, because they had been submitted well over ten years  ago. This is despite 
the fact that GI protection was an active area of legal and policy development in some countries, as 
well as in a number of free trade agreements (FTAs) . 
36.  She encouraged Members to consider responding to , or updating , the Checklist,  so that 
important developments were duly reflected in Members ' contributions. The e -TRIPS Submissions 
System was an easy and convenient tool to prepare and submit these responses and updates. Also, 
in line with the Council 's recommendation made in March 2 010, she invited Members to share 
information on bilateral agreements related to the protection of GIs they are party to.  
37.  The Council agreed  to revert  to the matter at its next meeting.  
11  TECHNICAL COOPERATION AND CAPACITY BUILDING  
38.  The Chair said that the Co uncil had regularly conducted annual reviews of technical cooperation 
and capacity building activities at its end of the year meeting. These reviews were based on reports 
submitted by developed country Members, international organizations and the WTO Secre tariat. She 
invited  the Secretariat to recall the usual arrangements for such reviews.  
39.  The representative of the Secretariat  took the floor.  
40.  The representatives of Bangladesh  and South Africa  took the floor.  The representative of Nigeria 
requested that her  statement be included in the record of the meeting.  
41.  The Chair proposed to proceed with the customary  arrangements and conduct the next review 
during  the next Council meeting, scheduled to take place in October 2020.  The documentation 
provided on this topic was usually quite extensive. In order to ensure a streamlined and systematic 
approach to the management of this documentation, she recommended the use of the e -TRIPS 
Submissions System, which allow ed the convenient  preparation of such submissions, both in capital 
and at the missions in Geneva. The Secretariat would be pleased to provide informal support and 
background to interested delegations.  
42.  The Council agreed  to proceed with the usual arrangements and undertake the next review on 
technical assistance and capacity building at the October 2020 meeting.  
43.  The Chair invited the Secretariat to announce the new edition of the Trilateral Study  on Access 
to Medical Technologies and Innovation.  
44.  The representative of the Secretariat  took the floor.  
45.  The representatives of Chile; Zimbabwe ; Tanzania, on behalf of the LDC Group ; the 
World  Health Organization  (WHO); and the World Intellectual Property Organization  (WIPO) took the 
floor. 
46.  The Council took note  of the statements made.  IP/C/M/9 5 
 
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  12  LDC GROUP PROPOSAL ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTICLE 66.2 OF THE 
TRIPS  AGREEMENT  
47.  The Chair said that the agenda item had been requested by Chad, on behalf of the LDC Group . 
A communication had been circulated in document IP/C/W/664. She invited the LDC Group to 
introduce the agenda item.  
48.  The representative of Bangladesh, on behalf of the LDC Group , took the floor  to introduce the 
item. 
49.  The representatives of  Nepal ; Nigeria ; Tanzania , on behalf of the LDC Group ; Zimbabwe ; 
South  Africa ; India; China ; the United States of America ; Switzerland ; Canada ; Japan ; Indonesia ; 
and, the European Union  took the floor.  
50.  The Council took note of the statements made.  
13  INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND THE 1998 WORK PROGRAMME ON ELECTRONIC 
COMMERCE  
51.  The Chair said that the agenda item had been requested by South Africa. A communication had 
been circulated in document IP/C/W/665. She invited South Africa to introduce the item.  
52.  The representative of South Africa  took the floor  to introduce the item . 
53.  The representatives of India; the European Union ; Zimbabwe ; the United States of America ; 
Canada ; Chile; China ; Australia ; and, Switzerland  took the floor.  The representative of Niger ia 
requested that her statement be included in the record of the meeting.  
54.  The Council took note  of the statements made . 
14  INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND PUBLIC INTEREST: BEYOND ACCESS TO MEDICINES 
AND MEDICAL TECHNOLOGIES TOWARDS A MORE HOLISTIC APPROACH TO TRIPS  
FLEXIBILITIES  
55.   The Chair said that this item  had been put on the agenda at the request of South Africa . 
A communication concerning had been circulated in document IP/C/W/66 6. She invited South Africa  
to introduce the item.  
56.  The representative of South Africa  took the floor  to introduce the item . 
57.  The representative s of Nigeria ; Indonesia ; Chile; Tanzania , on behalf of the African  Group ; 
Colombia ; China ; Malaysia ; Zimbabwe ; India; Chinese Taipei ; Canada ; the United Kingdom ; 
the European Union ; Ecuador ; Australia ; Switzerland ; the United States of America ; Sri Lanka ; 
Japan ; and the WHO took the floor.  
58.  The Council took note of the statements made . 
15  INFORMATION ON RELEVANT DEVELOPMENTS ELSEWHERE IN THE WTO  
59.  The Chair recalled that the purpose of this agenda item was to keep Members informed  on 
developments in other WTO bodies , which are relevant to TRIPS matters. No discussion was required, 
but delegations c ould of course comment if they so wish ed. 
15.1  Dispute Settlement Developments Relevant to the TRIPS A greement  
60.  The Chair informed Members about recent adoptions of appellate body and panel reports 
relevant to the TRIPS Agreement, which had been circulated since the February meeting.  
61.  On 29 June 2020, the Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) had adopted two Appellate Body Reports 
on Australia – Certain Measures Concerning Trademarks, Geographi cal Indications and Other Plain IP/C/M/9 5 
 
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  Packaging Requirements Applicable to Tobacco Products and Packaging  (WT/DS435/AB/R and Add.1, 
and WT/DS441/AB/R and Add.1). The DSB also had adopted the corresponding Panel Reports as 
upheld by the Appellate Body Reports. Th is information had been circulated in documents 
IP/D/31/Add.1 and IP/D/32/Add.1.3  
15.2  TRIPS Amendment  
62.  The Chair noted that since the February  meeting , Niger and Barbados had deposited their 
respective instruments of acceptance  of the Protocol Amending the TRIPS Agreement . She 
congratulated both delegations on completing the process.  
63.  Thirty -three Members were yet to accept the TRIPS Amendment. She encouraged these 
Members to expedite action in good time before the next deadline for acceptance expires. She 
recalled that, under the General Council Decision of 10 December 2019 (WT/L/1081) the period for 
acceptance of the Protocol was extended and will now expire on 31 December 2021.  
15.3  IPR-Related Issues in Trade Polic y Reviews  and th e Director -General 's Monitoring 
Reports  
64.  The Chair invited the Secretariat to report on IP-related issues that ha d been considered in the 
context of individual Members ' trade policy reviews.  
65.  A representative of the  Secretariat  took the floor.  
66.  The represent ative of Canada  took the floor.  
67.  The Council took note  of the information provided . 
16  OBSERVER STATUS FOR INTERNATIONAL INTERGOVER NMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS  
68.  The Chair said that the updated list of pending requests for observer status in the TRIPS Council 
by intergovernmental organizations was contained in document IP/C/W/52/Rev.14. The information 
provided by the relevant intergovernmental organizations  was available on the Members ' website.4 
She encouraged Members to try to resolve the differences regarding  pending requests, among 
themselves. She stood ready to assist.  
69.  The Chair recalled that, at its meeting in November 2012, the Council  had agreed to grant 
ad hoc observer status on a meeting -to-meeting basis to the European Free Trade Association 
(EFTA). Since then, th e invitation ha d been renewed at each meeting. He suggest ed that EFTA again 
be invited to attend the Council 's next formal meeting on an ad hoc basis. 
70.  The Council agreed  to invite EFTA to attend the next meeting on an ad hoc  basis 
17  OTHER BUSINESS  
17.1  Annual Review of the Special Compulsory Licensing System  
71.  The Chair recalled that , at a special meeting in January 2017, the Council had taken note of the 
entry into force of the amended TRIPS Agreement. At that time, Members had said that it would also 
be the moment to consider in greater detail how the Special Compulsory Licensing System could be 
effectively used as a practical procurement tool to respond to public health needs. Members had also 
proposed accompanying measures, including legislative advice to implement the mechanism into 
domestic law and capacity building activities.  
72.  The next annual review of the System could be usefully guided by the issues  that Members had 
already identified in the past. Good sources for these issues are the Council 's 2016 Report on the 
Annual Review that had been circulated in document IP/C/76, as well as those listed in Annex II to 
 
3 Also circulated with document symbol WT/DS435/28 and WT/DS441/29.  
4 Available at https://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/trips_e/xtrips_e/igo_observer_e.htm .  IP/C/M/9 5 
 
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  the WTO Secretariat 's Annual Report on i ts Technical Cooperation Activities that had been circulated 
in document IP/C/W/618.  
73.  As part of the annual review, Members might also wish to consider discussing any measures 
taken to implement and use the Special Compulsory Licensing System under Article 31bis of the 
TRIPS Agreement into domestic law, including in the context of COVID -19. 
74.  She encouraged Members to make proposals on how to take this issue forward. She intended 
to consult Members in the coming weeks on how to prepare for a meaningful review. She would, of 
course, welcome Members ' active support and suggestions in preparing for and carrying out 
substantive discussions.  
17.2  18th Annual Review under Paragraph 2 of the Decision on the "Implementation of 
Article 66.2 of the TRIPS Agr eement " 
75.  The Chair said that paragraph 1 of the Decision on the Implementation of Article 66.2 provided 
that developed country Members shall submit annual reports on actions taken or planned in 
pursuance of their commitments under Article 66.2. For this pur pose, they had to provide new 
detailed reports every third year and, in the intervening years, provide updates to their most recent 
reports. For 2020 – which was an intervening year – developed country Members were expected to 
provide updates to the report s they submitted last year. Paragraph 2 of the Decision said the Council 
would review these updated reports at the last meeting of the year.  
76.  She proposed that developed country Members be requested to submit their updates by 
18 September, i.e., the same da te as the deadline for submission of Technical Assistance Reports. 
The submission date was about four weeks before the last meeting, scheduled for 
15-16 October  2020, and would allow timely circulation of the documents.  
77.  The information to be provided in th e reports was specified in paragraph 3 of the Decision. In 
the past, Members had considered some practical approaches to streamlining their submission and 
management of this information. She encouraged reporting Members to use the e -TRIPS Submission 
System  to submit this information. To assist Members, the Secretariat had organized two webinars 
on the use of e -TRIPS to submit reports. They were also welcomed  to seek informal support and 
background information from the Secretariat in this regard.  
78.  The Council  so agreed . 
17.3  Other Planned Activities for the Benefit of LDCs  
79.  The Chair said that, in connection with Article 66.2, the Secretariat was planning the 
13th Workshop on Technology Transfer. After the successful arrangements last February , the 
Secretariat was p lanning to organize the workshop back -to-back with the Council 's meeting in 
February 2021. The Secretariat would  contact the relevant  delegations to prepare for the Workshop.  
17.4  Date of Next Meeting  
80.  The Chair recalled that, as agreed by the TRIPS Council in October 2019, the next meeting was 
scheduled for 15 -16 October 2020. The nature of th e meeting w ould depend on the situation at that 
time. Details on the appropriate technical and logistical arrangements  would be shared in September.  
81.  She would constructively engage in intensive consultations and preparatory work  for the next 
meeting . She looked forward to working closely with delegations , to see if progress could be made, 
obstacles removed and build a more s olid foundation for the Council 's future wor k. 
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