The Current System of Trade and Intellectual Property Rights

Abstract

One of the key arguments of the proponents of the Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights adopted as a component of the World Trade Organization was that the grant of intellectual property rights would boost innovation globally. The world map of R&D, however, does not show a general improvement of R&D capabilities in developing countries in the last 20 years. While the pharmaceutical industry was an active promoter of that Agreement, the innovation in this sector has declined. The proliferation of pharmaceutical patents reflects strategies aiming at blocking generic competition rather than a genuine increase in innovation. Alternative models to generate new drugs, especially those needed to address diseases prevalent in developing countries, are needed.