Description

In October 2002, the UNCTAD-ICTSD Project on Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) and Sustainable Development launched the Series of Bellagio Dialogues on Intellectual Property and Development in response to concerns that certain trends in the formulation of international intellectual property (IP) policies may be detrimental to economic, technological, social and cultural development as well as poverty eradication. The Series has gathered a diverse group of specialists, government experts and members of international and non-governmental organizations that meet in their personal capacity to assess current international trends on intellectual property and development. They are aimed at strategic discussions and the identification concrete recommendations that could contribute to the formulation of development-oriented IP policies.

Three Dialogues have been organized since 2002.

First Dialogue Towards Development-Oriented Intellectual Property Policy: Setting the Agenda for the Next Five Years (November 2002)

" The future of IP in the multilateral trading system;
" The challenge of new treaty development and harmonization;
" The promotion effective national policy formulation;
" The integration IP policies in development strategies

Second Dialogue Towards Development-Oriented Intellectual Property Policy: Advancing the Reform Agenda (October 2003)

" Latest developments in the IP field;
" TRIPS-plus standards and parallel multilateral, regional and bilateral negotiations;
" Technical assistance in the field of IP and development;
" Transfer of technology and technological capacity building.

Third Dialogue Policy Options for Ensuring Affordable Access to Essential Medicines (October 2004)

" Latest developments and trends on IP and health;
" Current efforts to develop Public Private Partnerships (PPP) as to engage in wider R&D; for neglected diseases;
" Approaches to facilitate access to medicines through compulsory licensing;
" Creating and promoting domestic drug manufacturing capacities: legal and economic feasibility assessment;
" Competition policy as a tool to address public health concerns. The case of South Africa.

Fourth Dialogue Moving the pro-development IP agenda forward: Preserving Public Goods in health, education and learning (November/December 2004)

" Overview of recent IP trends with emphasis on health and education, research and dissemination of knowledge in general;
" Promoting innovation and public goods in health, education and science;
" Protection of undisclosed information related to the approval and marketing of pharmaceutical products: comparative experiences;
" Fostering access to education, research and dissemination of knowledge through copyright;
" The new challenges of open source models for developing countries.

The organizers have considered useful to make available all the relevant material of the Dialogues including agendas, participant lists, background papers, conclusions, and informal reports of the meetings. One outcome of the Dialogues was the launching of the Frati Initiative with the view of initiating a process of follow-up and monitoring to the ideas and suggestions made during the Dialogue.