Using Intellectual Property to realise SDGs 2030

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OPINION

By Amb. Francis Butagira

Last week Uganda joined the rest of the world to celebrate World Intellectual Property Day.

Every year on April 26, member countries of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) use this day to highlight the pivotal role of IP in stimulating innovation, which accelerates social economic development.

World IP Day is an opportunity to recognise all those engaged in research, scientific inquiry, artistes and authors, among others, who are tirelessly producing innovative ideas that are transforming society.

This year, the day was celebrated under the theme Intellectual Property (IP) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Building our common future with innovation and creativity”

The theme comes at the right time when we are almost five years away from the deadline of 2030 in meeting the SDGs targets. This day, therefore, presents us with an opportunity to reflect on how the IP system can be integrated into strategic actions to achieve SDGs.

SDGS for national transformation

The SDGs stipulate a comprehensive framework for addressing social, economic and environmental needs across the globe. These are 17 interrelated ambitious targets set forth by 193 states of the United Nations in 2015.

The SDGs include no poverty, zero hunger, good health, quality education, gender equality, clean water and sanitation, affordable and clean energy, decent work and economic growth; industry, innovation and infrastructure; reduced inequality and sustainable cities and communities. The others are reasonable consumption and production, climate action, life below water, life on land; peace, justice and strong institutions, and partnerships for the goals.

It is expected that achieving these goals will transform the wellbeing of everyone in the world.

The role of IP in achieving sustainable development has been expressed in various international and regional forums, thus culminating in binding international and regional agreements. For example, Agenda 21 adopted during the Earth Summit in Brazil in 1992, which resulted in the Convention for Biodiversity (CBD), re-affirms the role of intellectual property rights for the indigenous communities towards sustainable development.

Intellectual Property confers exclusive legal rights and with this protection, an IP owner is encouraged to produce more innovative solutions. Such innovations are very critical in contributing to sustainable development.

For example, the SDG 2 of zero hunger can be achieved with the protection of plant breeders’ rights for new plant varieties, this enhances food security via introduction of improved crop varieties that are drought and pest-resistant; patent rights, in particular, play a crucial role in driving advancements in solar energy innovation, such as technology advancing the efficiency of solar panels or solar windows and wind energy innovation.

Protection of these innovations is crucial in SDG 7 of having affordable, reliable, sustainable, support SDG 7 of affordable and clean energies.

With copyright protection, authors can continue to produce books and other content for information dissemination.

This can significantly contribute to achieving SDG 4 of high-quality education.

Further, geographical indications, another type of IP, have the potential to unlock opportunities for local producers by linking them to regional and international markets, thus empowering them economically. This can contribute to reducing poverty in rural communities which contributes to SDG 1.

Intellectual property and innovation

In the field of medicine, the issue of Intellectual Property has generated debate specifically, in public health and access to essential medicine to combat some of the diseases that have plagued the world, especially Sub-Saharan Africa. The intellectual property system has been criticised for being a hindrance to access to medicines, where patent protection can lead to high prices for essential drugs, impacting SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being), and thus negatively impacting sustainable development.

To address this problem, the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Agreement on Trade and Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPS) provides for flexibilities for the least developed countries (LDCs) to exclude pharmaceuticals from patentability.

Governments can also issue compulsory licences in situations of national emergency or extreme urgency, public non-commercial use and other reasons. A compulsory licence can be used to enable the production and sale of generic drugs before the expiry of a patent.

In addition, the control over genetic resources through Intellectual Property Rights can affect biodiversity (SDG 15) and the rights of indigenous peoples (SDG 16). Some countries have adopted disclosure requirements of source of origin for any genetic resource material and associated traditional knowledge with genetic resources used in the invention.

There are also mechanisms to support access benefit-sharing agreements in utilisation of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge with genetic resources.

Clearly, from the foregoing, IP plays a fundamental role in meeting the SDGs. It is a clarion call on this World IP Day to everyone, to respect and appreciate intellectual property rights to build a common future with innovation and creativity.

The writer is the chairman board of directors, Uganda Registration Services Bureau