WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  IP/C/W/536/Add.6 
23 October 2009 
 
 (09-5270) 
Council for Trade-Related Aspects 
of Intellectual Property Rights Original:   English 
 
 
 
REPORT ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTICLE 66.2 
OF THE TRIPS AGREEMENT 
 
NEW ZEALAND 
 
Addendum  
 
 
 The following communication, dated 22 Octobe r 2009, from the delegation of New Zealand is 
being circulated pursuant to paragraph 1 of the Decision on Implementation of Article 66.2 of the 
TRIPS Agreement.  
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1. This submission provides a report on New Zeal and's activities in pursuit of commitments 
under Article 66.2 of the TRIPS Agreement concer ning technology transfer to least developed 
countries (LDCs) for the period July 200 8 - June 2009 and actions planned. 
2. Article 66.2 of the TRIPS Agreement provides that "developed country Members shall 
provide incentives to enterprises and institutions in their territories for the purpose of promoting and 
encouraging technology transfer to least developed c ountry Members in order to enable them to create 
a sound and viable technological base".  
3. Technology transfer is interpreted in this re port broadly to include training, education and 
"know-how", along with any capital component.  Us ing a United Nations definition, New Zealand 
sees four key modes of technology transfer:  (i) phy sical objects or equipment;  (ii) skills and human 
aspects of technology management and learning;  ( iii) designs and blueprints which constitute the 
document-embodied knowledge on in formation and technology;  a nd (iv) production arrangement 
linkages within which technology is operated. 
I. OVERVIEW OF INCENTIVES, TYPES OF TECHNOLOGY AND THE MODES OF 
TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER 
4. New Zealand's efforts to encourage technology tr ansfer to LDCs occur through a variety of 
channels or modes: promoting a broad economic environment that is  conducive to the development of 
New Zealand enterprises and institutions and enables th em to transfer technology abroad; bilateral and 
regional development assistance programmes; encouraging trade in goods and services; and 
facilitating a strong intellectual property environment.  However, it should be noted that New Zealand 
recognises that the most relevant and cost-effective technologies may come from other countries 
(consistent with untied aid).  New Zealand's recent history has also tended to avoid overly-
interventionist measures targeting sp ecific sectors or enterprises in favour  of an approach that enables 
all enterprises and institutions to bene fit from an improved environment.   IP/C/W/536/Add.6 
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  5. An important domestic influence on international investment (and thus technology transfer) 
by New Zealand businesses is the New Zealand tax regime.  Significant changes to New Zealand's 
international tax rules are currently before Par liament.  These planned changes will remove existing 
tax barriers to New Zealand outward investment, particularly into lower-tax jurisdictions.   
6. A key channel for promoting technology transfer from New Zealand to LDCs is through 
Official Development Assistance (ODA), manage d by the New Zealand Agency for International 
Development (NZAID).  NZAID views technology tr ansfer as an implicit element in achieving its 
overall objective of reducing poverty;  so much so, that it often cannot be distinguished from other 
elements of programmes.   
7. Due to New Zealand's history, culture and geographical location, most of NZAID's 
programmes focus upon LDCs in the neighbouring Asia-Pacific region, in particular: Samoa, 
Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Cambodia and Lao PDR (LDC WTO Members or Observers), Kiribati 
and Tuvalu.  In addition to identifying relevant b ilateral activities with key LDC partners, this report 
also records relevant regional activities that bene fit LDCs.  Any relevant activities of multilateral 
agencies that New Zealand provides co re funding to are not reflected in this report.  (Note that all 
figures quoted are in New Zealand dollars.) 
II. ODA ACTIVITIES PROVIDING TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER TO LDCS  
8. NZAID provided funding to the New Zealand Ministry of Research, Science and Technology 
(MoRST) to study the input New Zealand science can  have towards development objectives in Pacific 
Island Countries and Territories, and potential area s to improve policy and practice.  NZAID and 
MoRST are discussing a common way forward to address the issues the study raised.   
9. Separately NZAID has also amended the criteri a of an ODA contestable fund that funds state 
sector agencies to undertake activities to promote de velopment in the Pacific.  Eligibility has now 
been extended to include Crown Research Institut es, providing a further mechanism to promote the 
transfer of scientific research and technology to LDCs. 
10. A number of existing activities funded from this contestable fund provide for technology 
transfer (including training) from New Zealand govern ment departments to the Pacific.  Relevant 
activities amounted to over $NZ 1,200,000 in 2008/09, and included the following: 
• Programmes to strengthen the ability of peopl e to analyse and monitor water quality, 
and strengthen public health risk management techniques. 
 
• Support for waste treatment schemes and traini ng on waste management and recycling. 
 
• Specialist operational and leadership traini ng for the Pacific Island Fire Services. 
 
• Provision of training in prosecution assistance for the Samoan Attorney-General's 
Office. 
 
• Provision of training to Pacific News Medi a organisations to develop human rights 
technical expertise. 
 
• Provision of a database and relevant training to enable five Pacific Island countries to 
manage information on people travelling to New Zealand for seasonal work and 
seeking to do so. 
  IP/C/W/536/Add.6 
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  • Capacity building for improved bio-control of food crop pests. 
 
• Small amounts of funding for an ICT Re gional Development programme to enable 
Pacific Island countries to capture the benefits of modern technology and integrate communications capability. 
 
11. NZAID's bilateral and regional programmes pr ovide technology transfer through training, 
skill development, and technology infrastructure.  The following sections provide further background 
on selected bilateral and regional programmes as exam ples of technology transfer to least developed 
countries.  The figures quoted are for the year to June 2009 unless otherwise stated.  The information provided is based on the reporting criteria agr eed by the TRIPS Council in February 2003.  
A. EXAMPLES
 OF NZAID  BILATERAL  PROGRAMMES  WITH  LDC S 
12. As NZAID's programmes evolve over time, diffe rent elements of technology transfer will 
feature.  The following are some current exam ples from NZAID's bilateral programmes with a 
number of LDC WTO Member and Observer countries.    
1. Samoa 
13. The NZAID and Government of Samoa Minist ry of Justice and Courts Administration 
(MJCA) Institutional Strengthen ing Programme (MJCA ISP) was established to develop capacity in 
the areas of policy, planning and evaluation, quality assurance, human resource management, development and training (includi ng information technology) for the MJCA.  The priority areas of 
focus include courts administration, probation a nd parole, and censorship.  The MJCA technology 
transfer components of the programme include the funding of a three year IT training business plan, development of a Ministry IT strategy, purchasing of client hardware, user and administrator IT 
training, development of a Ministry website , networking of Ministry computers and the 
implementation of an Offender Management System  (OMS) for the Probation and Parole Service.  
The OMS is designed to track offenders through the Justice system and includes the development of 
client and server software, the purchase of server an d client hardware and the training of end users 
within Probation.  Since the programme inception in 2006, NZAID has budgeted to provide 
approximately $NZ 330,000 in technology transfer associated funding. 
14. NZAID and AusAID support the Samoa In-Country Training (ICT) Programme which 
provides training courses in a wide range of voca tional and work-based skills areas. Each course is 
specifically designed to meet an expressed need or sk ills shortfall in the public, private or civil society 
sectors.  Courses are generally from one to three we eks in duration and take place within Samoa. As 
part of the development of the programme and re lated information management for the managing 
organisation, an online Trainer and Tracer St udy database was developed to simplify the 
administration of advertising and tendering pr ocess and provide an electronic monitoring and 
reporting system. During 2008/09, NZAID and AusAID provided $NZ 910,000.  Of this approximately $NZ 20,000 rela ted to database systems which, while not substantial in financial terms, 
has had a significant impact by allowing the orga nisation to focus on it core business of delivering 
training. 
2. Solomon  Islands   
15. In 2004/05 NZAID responded to a request from the Solomon Islands Government and 
initiated a contract for technology transfer to provi de the Ministry of Education with an Education 
Information System.  Over time, the initiative has expanded to include development of associated 
databases for divisions of the Ministry for managing th e teacher payroll and tertiary scholarships.  As IP/C/W/536/Add.6 
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  new features are introduced, training is provided to in-house trainers and new training resources are 
developed to facilitate ongoing staff training.   In 2008/09 $NZ 325,000 was expended. 
16. NZAID has also supported the modernisation of the information management systems of the 
Solomon Islands Ministry of Fisheries and Mari ne Resources.  The programme has resulted in 
establishment of a working IT system enabling netw orking, data processing and more reliability in the 
licensing process.  Databases have been developed for recording key information (e.g. receipts, 
licenses and export data). Information is now in tegrated into regional databases, and licence 
information is held on an automate webpage for regional organisations and enforcement agencies. In 
2008/09 $NZ 840,000 was expended on work with the So lomon Islands Ministry of Fisheries and 
Marine Resources, IT systems made up approxi mately $NZ 130,000 of this funding.   
17. NZAID has also supported improvements to th e Solomon Islands Inland Revenue Division 
Revenue Management System (RMS ). Additional operational processes have been integrated into 
RMS, including assessment of provisional tax, mon itoring of outstanding retu rns and wider reporting 
functions. In 2008/09 $NZ 570,000 wa s expended on work with the So lomon Islands Inland Revenue 
Division, IT systems improvement made up a small proportion of this funding.    
3. Vanuatu   
18. In 2006/07 NZAID began funding a two-year programme with the Vanuatu Ministry of 
Education to develop an Education Information Management System, known as VEMIS.  The system 
provides essential data and qualitative information at the individual school level to support evidence 
based planning and policy development as well as  performance monitoring and evaluation for the 
primary and secondary education sector.  Approxima tely $NZ 1,000,000 has been spent to date on 
VEMIS, and an estimated further $NZ 60,000 is to  be spent on on-call technical support over the next 
12 months. 
19. New Zealand's Official Development Assistance is  relatively focused on Asia and the Pacific.  
It includes support to a number of non-WTO member LDCs.  The following are examples of NZAID's support for technology transfer w ithin some of these bilateral programmes. 
20. NZAID has set aside $NZ 1.4 million to help Vanuatu meet the new International Civil 
Aviation Organistion requirement fo r all new passports issued after April 2010 be machine-readable.  
This will include assisting Vanuatu to develop a new passport processing system and custom-made 
database, and to build a new secure  passport-processing facility.  The pr oject will also enable Vanuatu 
to continue its active participa tion in the RSE scheme.     
4. Tuvalu  
21. In Tuvalu, a small constitutional monarchy of approximately 11,000 people spread over nine 
low-lying coral atolls and islands, New Zealand' s ODA programme is focused on supporting fiscal 
management and economic develo pment; promoting self-reliant local development on the outer 
islands; and human resource developmen t.  In 2008/09, New Zealand provided 
approximately $NZ 900,000 to Tuva lu in bilateral funding for vari ous education activities (additional 
assistance was provided through NZAID's regional progra mmes).  This bilateral assistance included:  
• scholarships to study in New Zealand and in the region, eg at the University of the 
South Pacific, to transfer knowledge and e xpertise to further the social and economic 
development of Tuvalu;  and 
 
• short courses and training attachments in New Zealand and in Fiji to improve the 
technical and vocational skill base in Tuvalu.  IP/C/W/536/Add.6 
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  5. Kiribati  
22. Kiribati is an independent Micronesian country cons isting of 33 atolls and reef islands.  It is 
one of the poorest countries in the Pacific, and very  dependent on income from fishing – both in terms 
of the sale of fishing licences and from remittances from mariners at work on foreign owned vessels. 
The major emphasis of the NZAID Kiribati progra mme is human resource development and urban 
development.  In the year to June 2009 New Z ealand's bilateral assistance to Kiribati amounted to 
$NZ 6.7 million. 
23. An example of NZAID's assistance is the suppor t to the Kiribati Marine Training Centre 
(MTC), which is intended to maintain the competitiv eness of Kiribati's seamen in the maritime labour 
market.  Funding to MTC was $NZ 2.7 million in the year to June 2009, including capital 
development.   
B. NZAID:  REGIONAL  APPROACHES   
24. New Zealand provides LDCs with transfers of technology and assistance to encourage 
investment through various regional assistance progra mmes.  In some cases it is difficult to separate 
expenditure specifically provided to LDCs Members,  although it is clear that LDC Members within 
these regions benefit from these programmes. 
1. Pacific Economic and Trade-related Activities 
25. Sound economic management and appropriate policies (eg ICT regulation) are critical to 
encourage technology transfer, trade and investment.  NZAID provides funding to various regional organisations that provide economic advice, capacity building, or support the development of trade or 
investment: 
• the Private Enterprise Partnership helps design and deliver business support to and 
promote a business enabling environment for SMEs ($NZ 760,000 per annum FY08-10); 
 
• the Foreign Investment Advisory Service provides policy advice to governments on 
creating an environment friendly to forei gn and domestic direct investment and the 
private sector ($NZ 535,000 per annum FY08-10); 
 
• the Pacific Financial Technical Assistance Cent re assist countries to have the skills and 
institutional capacity to effectively manage  their economies (for example, helping the 
Solomon Islands to modernise their tax a nd customs divisions)  ($NZ 1,000,000 per 
annum FY08-10); 
 
• the Pacific Islands Trade and Investment Commission office in Auckland aims to 
enhance trade, investment and tourism opportunities for Pacific Island businesses ($NZ 890,000 in 2008/09). 
 
26. NZAID is also funding a Regional Trade Facilita tion Project to assist Forum Island Countries 
in the areas of sanitary and phytosanitary me asures, customs procedures, and standards and 
conformance ($NZ 5 million over five years). 
27. NZAID has funded the installation of a New Ze aland-designed customs database (PC Trade) 
in a number of Pacific Island Countries, including several LDCs.  New Zealand also fund helpdesk 
services (provided by Statistics New Zealand) to  enable countries to effectively utilise this 
technology. IP/C/W/536/Add.6 
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  2. Pacific Environmental Activities 
28. NZAID annually provides financial support to the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional 
Environment Programme (SPREP) and South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission (SOPAC) ($NZ 1.23 million and $NZ 2.12 million in 2008/09 respectively).  
29. These agencies in turn provide t echnical assistance to Pacific Countries and Territories in the 
areas of biodiversity management, climate change adaptation, land management and ocean resource 
use, water and sanitation, and hazard and disaster management, thus facilitating the transfer of 
knowledge into the region.  Greater Mekong Subr egion Trade and Development Programme. NZAID 
also administers the Pacific Regional Environment and Vulnerability Programme ($NZ 6 million per annum).  This includes support through the New Ze aland Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency 
Management for building up management systems in the Pacific for disaster management as well as 
other support for monitoring of risks.  In 2008/09 $N Z 447,000 was also provided to support transfer 
of specific knowledge on the management of pests. 
30. In 2008/09 this programme amounted to $N Z 5.8 million, with the aim of assisting 
developing countries to harness international trade fo r development.  This is achieved by building 
partners' capabilities at the government level to legi slate, regulate and implement, and at the business 
level in terms of production tec hniques and business skills, including elements of technology transfer.  
The projects involve the LDC Members Cam bodia and Myanmar and LDC Observer Lao PDR 
(Viet Nam is also a participant in some activities).  In 2008/09 the programme included:  
• building the legislative and regulatory capabilities of governments  in phytosanitary 
matters as well as building capacity to ensure effective p est surveillance and 
management and phytosanitary inspections; 
 
• improving government capabilities in food safety/quality; 
 
• building capacity of government in metrology (consistent weights and measures) to 
develop legislation and regulation and provide worl d-class inspection and testing, 
including through provision of technical hardware/equipment to assist in this area. 
 
III. OTHER NEW ZEALAND PROGRAMMES WITH A TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER 
COMPONENT   
A. I
NTELLECTUAL PROPERTY  
31. New Zealand has been actively involved in th e development of the South Pacific Forum 
Regional Framework on Intellectual Property.  Ne w Zealand has provided technical assistance and 
advisors in developing national, regional and international rules and legislation to protect the 
intellectual property rights of indigenous peoples.  Th is has led to the creation of a sui generis system 
to protect traditional knowledge a nd expressions of culture that can be adopted by South Pacific 
nations, many of which are LDCs. 
32. The Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (IPONZ) provides ongoing technical 
assistance, on request, to help developing and l east developed countries on issues relating to the 
registration of intellectual property rights, including plant variety rights.   
B. RECOGNISED SEASONAL EMPLOYER SCHEME (RSE) 
33. In April 2007 the Recognised Seasonal Employ er (RSE) scheme came into effect, enabling 
employers in the horticulture and viticulture industr ies to recruit seasonal workers from offshore, with  IP/C/W/536/Add.6 
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  a preference for the Pacific.  The purpose of the sch eme is to provide New Zealand employers with a 
reliable source of seasonal labour and to provide Pacific workers with income and employment 
opportunities.  While workers are in New Zealand th ey will learn new skills and be exposed to new 
ways of doing things, which they take home with them at the end of their contract.  Some RSE 
employers have also indicated an interest in possi ble investment and joint venture opportunities in the 
Pacific Islands.  Although the type of fresh produce gr own in the Islands is different to that grown in 
New Zealand, there is likely to be some skills and technology transfer as a result of RSE.  All of the 
LDCs in the Pacific (Kiribati, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu and Vanuatu ) have had workers in 
New Zealand during the first two seasons, as has T onga.  To strengthen the skill transfer element 
associated with RSE, a pilot programme is commenci ng in late-2009 to enable Pacific RSE workers to 
receive training while they are in New Zealand in the areas of literacy, numeracy and financial 
literacy.  This will support their ability to use a nd apply technologies in their home countries.  
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