The book provides a bottom-up assessment of WTO dispute settlement and the related challenges, experiences and strategies of nine individual developing countries in Africa, Asia, and South America. It assesses what these countries have done and can do to build the capacity to deploy and shape the WTO legal system. All chapters have been developed by local experts as input for regional dialogues organized by ICTSD.

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• Book reviews by Ambassadors and trade negotiators
• Interview with Gregory C. Shaffer
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In response to many requests, the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) is pleased to make available an information note which summarizes the key findings of its recent book “Intellectual Property and Sustainable Development: Development Agendas in a Changing World,” which was launched on 27th April 2010, at a side event during the last session of WIPO Committee on Development and Intellectual Property (CDIP).

The book, edited by Ricardo Meléndez-Ortiz and Pedro Roffe, was inspired by the dialogues and events sponsored by ICTSD globally since 2001, many of which were held in collaboration with the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in the context of their joint project on intellectual property rights and sustainable development.

It brings together a selected number of papers by recognized experts in the field of IP and development initially produced for these dialogues, as well as those authored by rising scholars and policy-makers. The book’s ability to unite a diverse range of voices on issues that occupy a central space in today’s global policy debates is part of what sets it apart as a unique contribution to this field.

From a development perspective, a number of new and emerging IP issues are examined in this book as well. Case studies and experiences from Africa, Asia, and Latin America analyse the impact of IP on the pharmaceutical sector, the protection of life forms and traditional knowledge, geographical indications, access to knowledge, and the role of competition policy. Challenges developing countries face in the TRIPS-plus world are also addressed. The experiences revealed, as well as cyclical attitudes toward IP, show that there is ultimately no universal model of IP protection.

This book considers a number of new and emerging IP issues from a development perspective. Case studies from Africa, Asia, and Latin America examine the impact of IP on the pharmaceutical sector, the protection of life forms and traditional knowledge, geographical indications, access to knowledge and the role of competition policy. The challenges developing countries face in the TRIPS-Plus world are also addressed. The experiences revealed, as well as cyclical attitudes toward IP, show that there is ultimately no universal model of IP protection.

“Ricardo Meléndez-Ortiz and Pedro Roffe of the ICTSD have put together an important book for those interested in global intellectual property reforms and the development implications for the existing international intellectual property system. The volume draws on a rich array of experiences and perspectives in countries from across the world. It is insightful, provocative, well-conceived and highly recommended.”

– Peter Yu, Kern Family Chair in Intellectual Property Law, Director, Intellectual Property Law Center, Drake University Law School

The diverse range of contributions to this thought-provoking book offer a wide variety of alternative perspectives on and solutions for the controversial issues surrounding the role of IP within sustainable development. As such, it will prove a stimulating read for government policy-makers, trade negotiators, academics, lawyers and IP practitioners in general, UN and other intergovernmental agencies, development campaigners and aid agencies, environmentalist groups and university students.

‘This detailed book provides a comprehensive overview of the changing face of intellectual property internationally. With chapters from leading experts and scholars from across the globe, there is a thorough analysis of the multiple issues faced by developing countries and regions. This book is a must-have for anyone working in the field of intellectual property and sustainable development in the post-TRIPS world.’

- Daniel Robinson, Institute of Environmental Studies, The University of New South Wales, Sydney

The first part of this book looks at the IP landscape in general and then considers IP reform processes in a number of developing countries. Part II includes several country case studies in Africa, Asia, and Latin America on topical issues in the current IP debate, including questions relating to the impact of IP on the pharmaceutical sector, the protection of life forms and traditional knowledge, geographical indications, access to knowledge and public research institutes, and the role of competition policy. Here, the authors offer a wide variety of development perspectives and alternative solutions on the role of IP in these controversial issues. Finally, Part III of this work examines a number of the challenges that developing countries face in the TRIPS-Plus world.

“This valuable book constitutes a significant contribution to new and emerging Intellectual Property issues, coming uniquely from a development perspective. The wide range of authors who have contributed to this work has resulted in a well-balanced and thoughtful reflection on the most controversial IP development issues. For any one working or interested in these issues, this book is a must-read.”

– Maximiliano Santa Cruz, Director of the Chilean National Institute of Industrial Property and Chair of the WIPO Standing Committe on the Law of Patents

The book is the result of the work and initiatives undertaken by ICTSD in recent years. It brings together a selected number of papers produced by recognized experts in the field of IP and development, as well as those written by rising and promising scholars and policy-makers. The authors come from different parts of the globe but are united by their shared concern that more-balanced IP regimes responding to sustainable development imperatives are needed.

“The trajectory of technological innovation can shape the course of development; whether developing countries can catch up with the developed, whether new medicines will solve enduring diseases of poverty, whether poor countries can grow economically sustainably. Much is at stake with the way intellectual property policies are designed and implemented globally and nationally. This volume is a superb collection of cutting edge papers on the economic, political and institutional dimensions of this policy – an essential reading for policy makers grappling with intellectual property policy choices.”

- Sakiko Fukuda-Parr, Professor of International Affairs, The New School, New York

To order, visit Edward Elgar online.

The purpose of this publication is to deepen the understanding of policy-makers and other stakeholders of the major issues and challenges that least developed countries (LDCs), small and vulnerable economies (SVEs) and small island developing states (SIDS) face with respect to the interface between trade and climate change. Previous work in this field has focused largely in the concerns of developed countries and large developing countries such as Brazil, India and China. Yet, for small economies, the inter-relationship between trade and climate change is likely to have significant development implications.

LDCs, SVEs and SIDS are amongst the countries most vulnerable to climate change. Not only do many face amongst the most severe physical impacts from climate change - often in the form of too much water, or too little - but they also have economies that are particularly sensitive to climatic variation, since these are based in the natural environment and dominated by agriculture, fisheries, forestry and tourism. Furthermore, countries in this group are amongst the most open and trade-dependent economies in the world. Many are remote from major markets, being either island or landlocked countries, and face high transportation costs. They also face deep institutional and human resource capacity constraints in formulating and institutionalising effective pre-emptive and response measures to climate change and climate change policies.

The study that this book presents was carried out under the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development’s (ICTSD) Global Platform on Climate Change, Trade and Sustainable Energy. It was implemented by the Commonwealth Secretariat in response to the Lake Victoria Commonwealth Climate Change Action Plan, agreed by Commonwealth Heads of Government in Uganda in November 2007.

The study, in draft form, was considered at a Multi-stakeholder Dialogue on Trade and Climate Change: Key Issues for Developing Countries, which was held in Mauritius in September 2008. The meeting was hosted by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development of Mauritius and involved researchers involved in the project, regional bodies, the private sector and government officials from Africa, the Caribbean and Pacific. There was also strong representation from within Mauritius across a range of sectors. Some of the policy-oriented conclusions drawn out by the stakeholder dialogue are included in this volume. They indicated a rich programme of work that has still to be developed and implemented to address current development concerns of LDCs, SVEs and SIDS in respect to trade and climate change issues.

The papers in this volume comprehensively cover the trade and climate change concerns of LDCs, SVEs and SIDS, looking at the impact of climate change on key trade sectors, including agriculture, fisheries and tourism, and exploring the needs of these most vulnerable countries with respect to transport and access ro clean, efficient and renewable sources of energy for development, and technologies that will support more sustainable forms of production and livelihoods into the future.

The book highlights some of the most immediate concerns of LDCs, SVEs and SIDS in respect of trade and climate change issues, but the implication of the analysis this volume presents is also that there need to be a transformation of trade policy approaches, at the national and international levels, to support a diversification away from trade sectors that are highly vulnerable to climate change, and to better support economic competitiveness, low-carbon development and poverty reduction in the most vulnerable countries in the world.

Do the World Trade Organization’s rules on ‘green box’ farm subsidies allow both rich and poor countries to achieve important goals such as food security, or do they worsen poverty, distort trade and harm the environment?

Current WTO requirements set no ceiling on the amount of green box subsidies that governments can provide, on the basis that these payments cause only minimal trade distortion. Governments are thus increasingly shifting their subsidy spending into this category, as they come under pressure to reduce subsidies that are more directly linked to production. However, growing evidence nonetheless suggests that green box payments can affect production and trade, harm farmers in developing countries and cause environmental damage. By bringing together new research and critical thinking, this book examines the relationship between green box subsidies and the achievement of sustainable development goals, and explores options for future reform.

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• Information note
• Press release
• Reviews
• Video Interview
• List of contributors
• Table of contents

November 2009

This mapping study starts from the premise that the WTO is a valuable and indispensible multilateral institution. However, after an sixty-year history, the multilateral trading system faces a suite of challenges and needs to be strengthened to better reflect the changing global political economy, address sustainable development challenges, and respond to the priorities of its weakest members.

It is in this positive spirit that we publish Strengthening Multilateralism: A Mapping of Proposals on WTO Reform and Global Trade Governance. In the 15 years since the World Trade Organization (WTO) was established, the issue of institutional reform - whether it is needed, in what form, and via what kind of process - has been an ever-present issue for the organization and its Member States. While calls for strengthening multilateralism and for WTO reform have been more acute at particular junctures in the WTO’s recent history - most particularly following the Seattle, Cancun and Hong Kong Ministerial Conferences - they have been a constant theme of academic commentary and analysis, civil society and business advocacy, parliamentary discussion, and Member State concern. Renewed interest in proposals to strengthen the multilateral trade system and the functioning of the WTO are already evident in preparation for the Seventh Ministerial Conference to be held in November-December 2009.

This ‘mapping study’ compiles a sampling of the numerous proposals and political statements on reform of the WTO put forward since 1995.  The mapping comprises an overview, two Annexes and an extensive reference list for interest readers. The first Annex gathers a sample of political statements and decisions from WTO member states, the WTO Secretariat, and heads of international organizations that speak to the need for strengthening multilateralism, and reform of the WTO and global trade governance. The second Annex similarly compiles a sample of reform proposals, but this time focuses on contributions from academics and stakeholders.

This discussion draft represents the first iteration of the mapping study and is a work-in-progress. This document will be open for comments and inputs until 1 February 2010 . To facilitate feedback, a Wiki space for comments on the discussion draft of Strengthening Multilateralism can be accessed at: http://strengtheningmultilateralism.wikispaces.com/ .
PDF copies are available online on ICTSD’s website (www.ictsd.org) and via Oxford University’s Global Economic Governance Programme (www.globaleconomicgovernance.org) by clicking here: http://www.globaleconomicgovernance.org/wp-content/uploads/StrengtheningMultilateralism.pdf .

The final publication is scheduled for early 2010. A web-based version of the final annexes to the report will be published on line with a facility for on-line collaboration to update and supplement the database of reform proposals.

This report builds on the existing work of both the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development and the Global Economic Governance Programme. In particular, it follows our earlier joint publication Rebuilding Global Trade: Proposals for a Fairer, More Sustainable Future, a compilation of short essays on trade and global economic governance published in advance of the G20’s London Summit in early 2009.

Since 1996, ICTSD has worked on a range of systemic issues and matters of institutional reform that concern the future of the WTO’s and its contributions to sustainable development. These include ICTSD reporting, publications and dialogues on matters ranging from reform of the WTO’s dispute settlement process and NGO engagement with the WTO, to initial proposals related to Aid for Trade and ongoing work on the relationship between regionalism and the multilateral trading system.

At GEG’s Global Trade Governance Project, this literature review represents the latest phase of scholarly research designed to help bolster understanding of how to make global economic governance work better for developing countries. Surprisingly, while the body of scholarly research on WTO reform has grown, no similarly comprehensive effort has been made to systematically compile an overview of the range of proposals already on the table, and importantly, to organize them according to the WTO function at hand and to differentiate their proposed purposes.

As G20 leaders gather in London on 2 April, the focus of their agenda will be on working together to promote effective, coordinated responses to the global economic crisis and to the state of global trade. In the context of the crisis, the immediate priority of many governments and trade experts is rightly to create and implement a strategy that will offset declining trade and investment, particularly in developing countries where the crisis threatens to impede economic growth and development progress made in recent years.

In an effort to address these pressing issues and provide suggestions for G20 leaders’ deliberations, ICTSD partnered with the Global Economic Governance Programme (GEG) to gather short essays from a broad range of scholars and experts around the world. Contributing authors were asked to consider, among other points, concrete proposals for trade-related actions that G20 leaders should undertake; challenges facing the multilateral trading system in the long term; and an examination of the reality and needs of developing countries in the context of the crisis.

And while the unique and valuable proposals in this compilation of essays not only provides suggestions for responding swiftly to the economic crisis, they also offer strategies for enduring interlocking crises in the area of food, fuel, climate, and poverty. Many of the essays emphasize the importance of an explicit focus on values, highlighting that efforts to stimulate growth, employment, and economic stability must also prioritize international commitments to development and sustainability. The significance of the quality of growth and trade, the distribution of their social benefits, and their impacts on environmental sustainability are extensively highlighted throughout the text as well.

Together, ICTSD and GEG trust that this publication will prove to be a constructive contribution to debates on global economic governance and sustainable development.

This book systematically explores the trade and environment interests of developing countries from a Southern perspective. The contributors write explicitly about both the fears and hopes in the South regarding trade and environment negotiations. Essays are from leading experts and thought leaders from various regions of the South and work to envision new, bold agendas and priorities for their region.