TWN Info Service on Intellectual Property Issues (Jul26/03)
14 July 2026
Third World Network

WIPO: Developing countries press for measurable Development Agenda outcomes, patent flexibilities and equitable representation

Geneva, 14 July ( TWN) – The Africa Group, India and Brazil used the first two days of general statements at the 68th series of meetings of the Assemblies of the Member States of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) to press the Secretariat to move the Development Agenda from "descriptive accounts of activities" to measurable impact, to defend TRIPS-consistent licensing flexibilities for pandemic preparedness, and to push ahead with copyright limitations and exceptions negotiations.

India added a governance critique already opened by Brazil on Day 1, criticising the WIPO Director-General's newly proposed senior management line-up and the persistent under-representation of developing regions in WIPO's leadership.

The 68th WIPO Assemblies are taking place form 7 to 15 July, at the WIPO headquarters in  Geneva  in a hybrid mode.

The Assemblies, chaired by Ambassador Carlos Sorreta of the Philippines, opened on 7 July with the adoption of the agenda in document A68/1 Prov 2, followed by the address of Director-General Daren Tang ahead of his second term beginning 1 October 2026.

Tang reported that global investment in intangible assets passed $10 trillion last year and intellectual property (IP) trade crossed $1.2 trillion, and set out a "one global IP movement" spanning developed and developing countries as one of four "dreams" for his second term.

General statements under Agenda Item 4 ran across both days and concluded only in the afternoon of 8 July: more than 130 individual Member States took the floor in their national capacity over the two days (70 on Day 1, 61 on Day 2).  There were 13 statements delivered by regional groups and coordinators: 12 on Day 1, including the Africa Group, Group of Latin American and Caribbean Countries (GRULAC), the Asia-Pacific Group (APG), Group B (of developed countries), Group of Central Asian, Caucasus and Eastern European Countries, the Arab Group, Central European and Baltic States regional group, the European Union, the Least Developed Countries (LDC) Group, Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries, the Central American forum and the ASEAN Working Group on Intellectual Property Cooperation, and one on Day 2, the Pacific Island Forum states, aligned with the APG. Neither GRULAC nor the APG delivered a second coordinator statement on Day 2; both groups' positions stood as set out on Day 1.

South Africa, speaking on behalf of the Africa Group, set the tone for the developing-country bloc on Day 1, telling the Assemblies that "future reports of the Director-General on the implementation of the Development Agenda should place greater emphasis on the tangible and measurable impact of development-related activities on the ground ... and move beyond descriptive accounts of activities by including clear, practical, and actionable recommendations."

On the Future Work Programme on patents and health, the Africa Group said  that "supporting national licensing flexibilities and promoting regional pharmaceutical manufacturing capacities are essential to strengthening pandemic preparedness and enhancing equitable access to medicines."

On copyright, it welcomed the Standing Committee's "decision to commence text-based negotiations towards the adoption of an international legal instrument on limitations and exceptions for libraries, archives, museums, educational and research institutions, and persons with disabilities not covered by the Marrakesh Treaty."

Speaking afterwards in South Africa's own national capacity, Deputy Minister Peace Mabe added that the Assemblies were meeting "at the moment of profound technological and economic change," with the world still confronting "poverty, inequality, public health pressures, food insecurity and climate change," and renewed the call for "a new commitment to the WIPO Development Agenda, balanced norm setting and practical technical assistance that is responsive to national and regional priorities".

Nepal, speaking for the LDC Group, said LDCs face "the triple digital gap ... in terms of infrastructure gap, usage gap and affordability gap," and called "for effective operationalization of the WTO TRIPS agreement flexibilities commitment and provision dedicated to the LDCs, particularly the Article 66.2 which refers to the transfer of technology to the LDCs".

Kenya, aligning with the Africa Group, said it "will continue to support the effective implementation of WIPO's Development Agenda, including the mainstreaming of its 45 recommendations into substantive programmes."

Egypt, associating with the Arab Group, said its national strategy was built "on the basis of our faith in the role of IP as a way to strengthen creativity and development" and that WIPO's work should "center the needs of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and the needs of Developing Countries".

Iran said the Assemblies were meeting in "a period in which technological change will shape not only the future of innovation but also the distribution of knowledge, opportunity, and economic power," and that "development must remain central to WIPO's response to emerging technologies," warning of "the risk of widening the existing knowledge, technological, and capacity gaps" and insisting that "the next technological era must not reproduce the inequalities of the present one".

Brazil had opened the governance critique on Day 1. "Brazil regrets that the proposed new senior management does not reflect proper renewal, rotation nor geographical balance," the delegation said, adding that "the usual non-transparent methods of selection was followed. Member States were not informed who the candidates were nor their qualifications ... We now have one woman less, a mere 25% of WIPO's senior team".

On Day 2, Argentina and Namibia took up the same complaint in their respective national statements. Argentina said it had "taken note of the efforts made for geographical diversity among staff" but was "concerned that that has not applied to senior leadership roles," while Namibia said it "remains very concerned by the continued imbalance in the geographical representation within WIPO's Secretariat," calling for "sustained efforts towards achieving a credible and balanced geographical representation, in particular for the African region".

India, taking the floor on Day 2, delivered one of the most pointed governance interventions of the Assemblies. The delegation said "there is a need to revive the system of all WIPO Committees reporting to the CDIP (Committee on Development and IP) on their contributions to the Development Agenda," called to "delink the evaluation of existing [external] offices from proposals for new ones," and said plainly that "the limited geographical diversity in WIPO's leadership and senior positions remains a genuine concern".

India added that "inclusive multilateralism requires that the organization's leadership mirror the diversity of all regions and their legal systems and not become grounds to perpetuate an IP divide between developed and developing countries," which the delegation said "is at odds with WIPO's own pursuit of more inclusive IP discussions."

The patents-and-health theme drew further support on Day 2. Bangladesh said it "appreciates the trilateral initiative involving WIPO, WHO and [the] WTO utilizing TRIPS flexibilities and encourages WIPO to undertake more of such initiatives."

Colombia said it recognized "the importance of discussions taking place in the different bodies within the organization including those connected to patent flexibilities and their implications for public health and access to knowledge for development."

Indonesia said the Development Agenda's "recommendations must remain effectively mainstreamed across all WIPO bodies and committees, rather than confined to any single forum."

On traditional knowledge and copyright, Nigeria called for "full mainstreaming … [of] the Development Agenda across every Committee and every norm setting process." Senegal asked the Director-General to "convene a Diplomatic Conference for the adoption of a Treaty proposed by the Africa Group on the exceptions applicable to copyright."

Uganda's Minister of Justice, Norbert Mau, invoked Oliver Twist on institutional inclusion: "the phrase 'Please, sir, I want some more' has become emblematic of the struggle for dignity in the face of institutional oppression worldwide," calling for "the recruitment of more Africans" at the Secretariat.

Developed-country groupings and delegations framed their priorities more narrowly across both days. Group B, through Germany, recalled "the paramount importance of WIPO's core mandate to promote IP protection worldwide" and asked to "reiterate the importance of the principle of merit in staff recruitment."

The European Union, through Ireland, said it "attach[es] particular importance to the development of the PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty), Hague, Madrid (trademark) and the Lisbon (geographical indications) Systems," with no reference to Development Agenda mainstreaming or patent-flexibility language.

The United States, opening Day 2's national statements, said "the time has come now to modernize" WIPO's filing systems but cautioned that "we should not be looking to renegotiate aspects of the highly successful PCT system," arguing that "WIPO must make important decisions on what to do in part by deciding what not to do."

The South Centre, an intergovernmental organization of developing countries speaking as an observer, said the proposed Deputy Director-General appointments favoured developed countries and reduced gender balance, "leaving three groups including the Asia and Pacific Group without representation," and separately flagged that "Standing Committees are not reporting to the General Assembly on Development Agenda implementation despite the 2017 decision."

Knowledge Ecology International (KEI) sated that “KEI looks forward to working with WIPO to improve transparency. Public confidence of multilateral institutions faces several challenges. Increasingly, WIPO is conducting consequential norm setting negotiations in secret. This gives unwarranted and unnecessary credence to the critics of the UN and undermines efforts to understand the history and meaning of the agreements that are ultimately reached.”.

Third World Network (TWN), also speaking as an observer, put figures behind the developing-country critique of the IP system itself: "Statements from the Africa Group, GRULAC, Asia Pacific Group, LDCs and individual Member States during the last two days conveyed a consistent and urgent message. IP must contribute to economic and social development. Over the years, IP has become a major vehicle for transferring rents from the Global South to the Global North."

TWN told the Assemblies that "in 2023 alone, low and middle income countries paid USD97.9 billion in IP royalties while receiving only USD16.6 billion," and that in 2024-25 "India received 31,940 PCT applications from foreign applicants while only 3,598 applications were filed through PCT from India, illustrating how treaties like PCT chiefly serve large companies in developed countries." TWN called upon Member States to reassess the assumption that IP automatically drives development and reiterated concern over Group B's disproportionate representation in WIPO's top management.+