TRIPS and International trade

The TRIPS agreement introduced intellectual property law into the international trading system for the first time, and remains the most comprehensive international agreement on intellectual property to date. The TRIPS Agreement is a part of the Agreement establishing the World Trade Organization (WTO) which India has ratified and which came into force from January 1, 1995.  The TRIPS Agreement lays down minimum standards for protection and enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) in member countries and requires them to bring their laws and regulations on Intellectual Property (IP) into conformity with their obligations within the time frame stipulated in the Agreement. 

Article 69 of the TRIPS agreement states that members agree to cooperate with each other with a view to eliminating international trade in goods infringing intellectual property rights.

 Unlike other treaties on intellectual property, TRIPS has a powerful enforcement mechanism. States can be disciplined through the WTO's dispute settlement  mechanism. 

With respect to the implications of the agreement, it envisages a one year transition period for developed countries to bring their legislation and practices into conformity. Developing countries and countries in the process of transformation, centrally planned economy into market economy would have a five year transition period and least developed countries eleven years.

The TRIPS Agreement says WTO member countries must comply with the substantive obligations of the main conventions of WIPO — the Paris Convention on industrial property, and the Berne Convention on copyright.  The TRIPS Agreement also introduces additional obligations in areas which were not addressed in these conventions, or were thought not to be sufficiently addressed in them.

Therefore internationalising IPRs creates the capability to own the rights to a broad base of products. These products cannot be legally produced for the duration of the patent without permission from the patent owner. Prior to TRIPs many developing countries did not provide IPR protection on agricultural chemicals or plant varieties. This meant that they could produce them locally or import them at cheaper prices. Developing countries are now prevented from borrowing foreign technology and agricultural companies are able to obtain higher prices for their products as other avenues for obtaining them are closed.

Patents may indeed make the food supply more vulnerable - economically and ecologically. Patenting encourages monocultural production and is likely to increase this trend even beyond that of the Green Revolution. It is crucial to the method of monocultural agriculture that a diverse base of varieties is preserved so that entire varieties of crops are not destroyed. It also threatens diversified control of the supply of food increasing the possibility of scarcity. "A patent granting a single corporation monopoly control over one of the world's most important food crops is a threat to world food security.

The TRIPS agreement tends to regularize the international trade by providing certain minimum standards which are to be followed by the member countries.

However, there are certain problems related to the application of the provisions of the TRIPS agreement to the developing countries. The grant of patent might adversely effect the development of the African and Asian countries.

Suggestions

The TRIPS agreement effects the international trade in more than one manner. On one hand, it provides protection to the intellectual property, on the other, it adversely effects the interests of the developing countries.

In order to bring about uniform development of all the countries, it is required that certain changes are made in the agreement. The various changes that are required are:-

(1)    There is should be a change in the grant of patent on crops so as to prevent any food scarcity due to monopolization in crops.

(2)    Regarding medicines, only process patent should be given so as to encourage a healthy competitive market and also to make available the various life saving drugs.

(3)    There is a need to provide provisions for the benefit of the developing and the under developed nations so as to ensure their proper economic development.