Home ›› 14 Feb 2022 ›› Editorial
Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement), Article 66.2 requires developed countries to provide incentives to facilitate technology transfer to LDCs. "Developed country Members shall provide incentives to enterprises and institutions in their territories to promote and encourage technology transfer to least-developed countries in order to enable them to create a sound and viable technological base.".
It is clear from the language of the Article that developed countries encourage their enterprises/entities to engage in Technological Transfer(TT) rather than market-based TT that largely needs to channel through the private sector. It is, of course, true that measuring private TT is difficult in the absence of a unified reporting mechanism. On the other hand, market flows for the advanced developed economies to LDC are minimal in the lack of policies that offer additional incentives. The legal obligation in Article 66.2 is on the government rather than private firms.
Moreover, to define Technology Transfer, there is no clear criterion. It is observed that any sort of activities such as training, workshops, webinars and similar other activities have been included in the name of TT. In the absence of a definition, any activities the developed countries can be lengthened to qualify as TT. Thus it has become clear that from the reporting to the TRIPS council, it is not possible to understand the nature of Technology Transfer unless there is a clear understanding on the activities to be accomplished in the name of TT.
Furthermore, there is no mention of a timeline for completion of these activities, unlike Art 66.1. The objective is to enable LDCs to set up a standard viable technological base, how much it has been achieved has not been reported anywhere. In that respect there comes a responsibility of LDCs to report on what type of technology they have gathered in the name of technology transfer.
So far direct relation of TT cannot be established where experts believes that TT broadly can consider activities such as; financing support to purchase technologies, incentives for foreign direct investment, matching business in developed countries with those LDCs for skill-building purposes, training and support for education, scholarship, venture capital, sending skill experts to volunteer in developing technological capacities of LDCs.
Considering the obscurity, in 2003 WTO working group on Trade and Technology Transfer(TT) and TRIPS council decision came up with the request of a LDC member that Developed Countries will submit detailed annual targets on the Article 66.2 activities which is available in the a link of a WTO document called eTRIPS gateway.
In addition, WTO organizes annual workshops to gather information on implementing Article 66.2 of the TRIPS agreement: incentives for technology transfer to LDCs.
The next workshop is going to be held on March 2022. In order to gather inputs in that respect, WTO secretariat invited LDC members to reply to the survey questionnaire on current areas of needs and priority for technological development, projects that are relevant to its implementation and reviews.
Eight specific areas are included in the survey questionnaire: agriculture and food, environment/climate change, information and communication technology, public health and pharmaceuticals, construction/infrastructure/ transport, manufacturing, mining, and others. The survey areas tried to cover almost all the fields in which LDCs need technology, and each of the areas have a number of sub-areas.
WTO wants that the concerned countries specify areas on each of the above fields based on their needs. It is an opportunity for Bangladesh to identify the needs and priorities the areas for which support can be sought. In the category of 'other' areas such as; education, business, trade finance, metrology, social sciences and humanities are mentioned. In all these areas, we need technology support; however, prioritizing the areas in the country context is important for extensive research. The role of respective organizations, ministries, agencies would have to be clearly spelled out through an effective technology transfer policy.
WTO database shows 12 countries including UNCTAD and WTO reported in regard to 66.2, on technical cooperation activities under Art. 67, 32 countries and organization said. Database included projects through EU Horizon 2020, six projects (3-5 years) have been implemented in Bangladesh. Bangladesh, along with some other LDCs have received three projects from Canada, five from UK along with other partners, from USA ten under Article 66.2 and six from Article 67( technical assistance), 25 from Japan under Article 66.2 which are mostly webinar, seminars etc. Projects duration varies from 2019 to 2026, amounts are also different, and funds are mostly handled by the respective organization of the concerned countries.
Organizations of countries concerned are mentioned in the data base. The Canadian non-profit organization Nutrition International (NI) runs a programme in Bangladesh, Senegal and Tanzania and provides health-related technology in the field of Maternal, Peri-Natal, Natal, Child, and Adolescent Health. Through HarvestPlus, Canada, it runs a programme called 'An Integrated Food Systems Approach to Build Nutrition Security' in Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, and Zambia.
Through the 'AT2030, Life Changing Assistive Technology for All' programme UK provides health-related technology, environmentally friendly or sustainable technology, information and communications technology and other technology (education, AT innovation) in Bangladesh, Gambia, Liberia, Malawi, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Uganda, and Zambia. Another programme through 'Applied Research on Energy and Economic Growth (EEG)' programme, UK provides environmentally friendly or sustainable technology and climate change mitigation technology for Bangladesh, Malawi, Mozambique, Nepal, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, and Uganda. UK runs the 'Climate Compatible Growth (CCG)' programme through Universities, National and International Research Groups and Organisations with research capability in Bangladesh, Lao PDR, Pakistan, Uganda and Zambia.
Global Research Partnership (GRP) programme, UK provides health-related technology and food and agriculture technology in Bangladesh, Malawi, Nepal, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. The programme fields include: aquaculture for development, and women and children's health.
Through a global consortium named SoNAR, European Union runs a programme called 'A Global Social Sciences Network for Infectious Threats and Antimicrobial Resistance' in Bangladesh. BRAC University is a beneficiary institution of this program.
Higher Education and Leadership for Sustainable Textiles in Bangladesh programme supported by EU provides education support in Bangladesh. EU runs this project through the Ministry of Finance and its duration is 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2023. Geo-Information for Urban Planning and adaptation to climate change Bangladesh programme, is also supported by EU provides supports for capacity building/ methodological know-how transfer for geo-information, urban geology, urban planning, stratigraphy, seismicity, subsidence, remote sensing (radar).
Under the auspices of the Forum for Nuclear Cooperation in Asia (FNCA), Australia runs a project named 'Research on Climate Change Using Nuclear and Isotopic Techniques' in Bangladesh. The Forum for Nuclear Cooperation (FNCA) in Asia is a Japan-led cooperation framework for peaceful use of nuclear technology in Asia.
UNCTAD Debt Management and Financial Analysis System (DMFAS)' programme, managed by Switzerland information and communications technology support extended for Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Guinea Bissau, Haiti, Lao PDR, Madagascar, Mauritania, Rwanda, Togo, Uganda and Yemen started in 1980s and is ongoing.
Under the 'Climate Change Adaptation in Mountains' programme, Switzerland provides climate change mitigation technology support in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Nepal for adaptation, project duration 2018-2023. Switzerland includes climate change mitigation technology support in Bangladesh and Nepal Solar irrigation for Agriculture Resilience programme.
From USA Bangladesh received support for IPR Border Enforcement for Bangladesh Customs. A number of webinars have been organized for Indo-Pacific Region on Enforcement Against Trade in Counterfeit Goods, Challenges, Strategies, and Approaches to Counterfeit Goods, Indo-Pacific Region on Enforcement Against Trade in Counterfeit Goods, Organized Crime and IP Theft: Investigation, Intelligence, Evidence Collection, and Digital Investigative Analysis etc.
Japan supported for Establishment of National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI), the Project for Capacity Building of Nursing Services, project for Strengthening of Solid Waste Management in Dhaka North City, Dhaka South City and Chittagong City. The Project for Technical Development to Upgrade Structural Integrity of Buildings in Densely Populated Urban Areas and its Strategic Implementation towards resilient cities in Bangladesh, and a number of technical training courses.
It is seen that all the above projects are very important and helpful for Bangladesh, however, how much technology has been transferred is a question. There is also a need for assessing the benefits of the transferred technology reported to WTO. Extension of TRIPS for LDCs up to July 2034 may not be applicable for the graduating LDCs.
UN Technology Bank is a global organization dedicated to LDCs for improving science and technology managing IPR, Bangladesh need to be an active partner to accrue benefits out of it. Relevant ministries, technology institutions, universities, businesses would need to form a powerful consortium to improve technology research, development, access, and its implementation.
The writer is Chief Executive Officer of Business Initiative Leading Development (BUILD). She can be contacted at ceo@buildbd.org
