Business Wire

IFPMA

17.6.2022 10:33:10 CEST | Business Wire | Press release

Share
IFPMA: Pharmaceutical Industry Expresses Deep Disappointment With Decision on Waiving Intellectual Property Rights Adopted at the World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference

Today’s decision at the World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Conference (MC12) to endorse a TRIPS waiver for COVID-19 vaccines sends the wrong message to those carrying out research and development and innovating. It incorrectly points to intellectual property (IP) as a barrier to the pandemic response rather than an enabler bringing healthcare solutions, safely and quickly to patients.

IP has supported the fastest development and scale-up of safe and effective vaccines in history, with 13.9 billion COVID-19 vaccines produced to date. The IP framework has provided the basis for more than 380 voluntary partnerships for COVID-19 vaccines to be set up in record time, 88% of which involve technology transfer1 .

Today’s decision sends a dangerous signal not only to the pharmaceutical industry but to all innovative sectors. Dismantling the very framework that has brought solutions to tackle COVID-19 and facilitated the unprecedented number of partnerships, voluntary licensing, and knowledge-sharing taking place during this pandemic can have ripple effects for the future.

Thomas Cueni , IFPMA Director-General, said: “The conversations on an intellectual property waiver have been challenging from the beginning, with disregard to evidence and facts. The decision is a disservice to the scientists that left no stone unturned and undermines manufacturing partnerships on every continent. The single biggest factor affecting vaccine scarcity is not intellectual property, but trade. This has not been fully addressed by the World Trade Organization”.

About IFPMA

IFPMA (https://www.ifpma.org/ ) represents the research-based pharmaceutical companies and associations across the globe. The research-based pharmaceutical industry’s 2 million employees discover, develop, and deliver medicines and vaccines that improve the life of patients worldwide. Based in Geneva, IFPMA has official relations with the United Nations and contributes industry expertise to help the global health community find solutions that improve global health.

1 https://www.ifpma.org/resource-centre/research-based-biopharmaceutical-industry-on-the-trips-waiver-discussions-at-wto-ministerial-conference-mc12

Link:

ClickThru

About Business Wire

Business Wire
Business Wire
101 California Street, 20th Floor
CA 94111 San Francisco

http://businesswire.com

Subscribe to releases from Business Wire

Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Latest releases from Business Wire

HeadFirst Global Becomes Vertage, Uniting 11 Businesses in a Single Work Orchestration Platform24.9.2026 01:01:00 CEST | Press release

HeadFirst Global, a €10 billion group comprised of Impellam and HeadFirst Group,unites 11 businesses under Vertage, a single name, platform, and operating model Platform will curate the right mix of expert talent and AI agents to deliver work outcomes for enterprise customers across Americas, the UK and Europe, and Asia Pacific Operating brands retire in Q1 2027. Existing contracts, delivery teams, and day-to-day contacts continue unchanged through the transition HeadFirst Global, a leader in work orchestration, today announced it will become Vertage, as it builds a global technology platform that dynamically curates the right mix of expert talent and AI agents to deliver the work outcomes enterprises need. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260923823506/en/ Edzard Overbeek, Group CEO at Vertage The €10 billion group is bringing its 11 operating businesses together under the Vertage name, platform, and operating

Grid Dynamics Co-Hosts Physical AI Summit Alongside NVIDIA, EAIGG, and BGV to Accelerate Manufacturing Automation23.9.2026 22:05:00 CEST | Press release

Key Takeaways: Grid Dynamics joins NVIDIA, EAIGG, and BGV as co-hosts of the invite-only Physical AI Summit, bringing together leaders from enterprises, Physical AI startups, and investors on September 24, 2026, at the Wells Fargo Innovation Center in Menlo Park, CA. The summit, themed "From World Models to Real-World Control," focuses on moving Physical AI beyond demos and pilots into production across manufacturing, CPG, logistics, and retail. Grid Dynamics Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: GDYN) (“Grid Dynamics”), a premier AI transformation partner for the Fortune 1000, announced today that it is co-hosting the Physical AI Summit alongside NVIDIA, EAIGG, and BGV. The invite-only working forum will bring together participants from enterprises, Physical AI startups, and investors on September 24, 2026, at the Wells Fargo Innovation Center in Menlo Park, CA. Centered on the theme "From World Models to Real-World Control," the summit will focus on the practical challenges of deploying, scaling,

Liquid AI, in Collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies, Brings Personal AI Context to Devices Powered by Snapdragon23.9.2026 21:00:00 CEST | Press release

Liquid AI today, at Snapdragon Summit 2026, announced that Liquid Context, an on-device context layer, is now optimized for Snapdragon® processors, specifically using the Qualcomm® Hexagon™ NPU. In collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies, Liquid Context built a persistent understanding of the user from signals from devices with Snapdragon processors and made relevant context available to AI agents, whether they ran on the device, in the cloud or across both. Device manufacturers now have a foundation for more proactive, personalized and trustworthy AI experiences, alongside Liquid Agent, Liquid AI’s efficient embedded agent. Personal Context That Makes Any Agent More Useful Useful agents need to understand what matters to the user and when help is needed. With the user’s permission, Liquid Context learns from device signals, builds an understanding of routines, preferences and needs, and keeps that understanding current. It provides a shared context layer between the device and the us

Doha Debates Podcast Returns for a New Season Exploring the Ideas Shaping Our World23.9.2026 19:29:00 CEST | Press release

The 20-episode season, launched September 22, builds on questions raised in flagship debates and global town halls through long-form conversations. Qatar Foundation’s Doha Debates has launched a new season of the Doha Debates Podcast, with 20 episodes airing weekly through February 16, 2027. The series brings leading global thinkers together to debate some of the world’s most complex and challenging issues. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260923050361/en/ Doha Debates Podcast Returns for a New Season (Photo: AETOSWire) The podcast carries forward themes from its flagship debates and town halls through long-form conversations, reflecting Doha Debates’ commitment to open, truth-seeking dialogue exploring global issues with depth, nuance and respect for diverse perspectives. The opening episode, “Will China or the West lead the world into the future?” moderated by Soraya Salam, brings together Renata Ávila, CEO o

Dryad Wins International XPRIZE Wildfire Award for Autonomous Wildfire Detection and Suppression23.9.2026 19:00:00 CEST | Press release

European finalist demonstrates ultra-early wildfire detection with Silvanet and autonomous suppression with Silvaguard Dryad Networks, a leader in ultra-early wildfire detection, today announced it has been awarded $800,000 in the XPRIZE Wildfire competition for its performance in the Autonomous Wildfire Response finals in Alaska. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260923024178/en/ Silvaguard Observation and Suppression drone and Hangar Dryad advanced from an original field of approximately 300 entrants in the four-year competition. In June 2026, three finalists were challenged to autonomously detect and completely suppress a high-risk wildfire within 10 minutes of ignition across 1,000 km² of Alaskan wilderness, leaving any decoy fires untouched. It was the most demanding live test to date of what it will take to stop a destructive fire before it grows out of control. During the tests, the Dryad’s Silvanet senso

In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.

Visit our pressroom
World GlobeA line styled icon from Orion Icon Library.HiddenA line styled icon from Orion Icon Library.Eye