Just over two months remain for World Trade Organization (WTO) members to decide on the extension of flexibilities around the intellectual property of Covid-19 vaccines (see EUROPE 13035/28). It is time to move on to written proposals, said Sierra Leone’s Ambassador Lansana Gberie, who is chairing the talks, at a meeting in Geneva on Wednesday 12 October. It is to be decided whether or not the agreement reached in June for Covid-19 vaccines should be extended to Covid-19 diagnostic tools and treatments (see EUROPE 12974/2).
The members are, at this stage, divided into three groups: - those who call for a straightforward extension of the agreement to treatments and diagnostic tools; - those who want evidence that intellectual property hinders the distribution of treatments and diagnostics (including the EU); - those who wish to go on a case-by-case basis by listing the products that should benefit from the flexibilities (including the US).
Lansana Gberie asked delegations with a specific opinion to circulate written proposals before the next WTO meeting on intellectual property on 2 November.
In the meantime, members should talk to each other bilaterally and deal with specific requests, Mr Gberie said, so as to settle as many issues as possible before the next meeting. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)