New Trends in Technology Transfer
Implications for National and International Policy
by John H. Barton
Intellectual Property and Sustainable Development Series Series • Issue Paper 18
This study addresses the issue of new trends in technology transfer and their implications for national and international policy. It is one further contribution of the ICTSD Programme on Intellectual Property Rights and Sustainable Development to a better understanding of the proper role of intellectual property in a knowledge-based economy. They objective of the study is to explore how technology is transferred to developing countries and barriers that affect its transfer. To this end, it identifies policy approaches that might be of assistance in overcoming such barriers by addressing the flow of human resources, the flow of public-sector technology support, and the flow of private technology embodied in goods and services. The premise of ICTSD’s work in this field, together with its joint project with UNCTAD, is based on the understanding that Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) have never been more economically and politically important or controversial than they are today. Patents, copyrights, trademarks, industrial designs, integrated circuits and geographical indications are frequently mentioned in discussions and debates on such diverse topics as public health, food security, education, trade, industrial policy, traditional knowledge, biodiversity, biotechnology, the Internet, and the entertainment and media industries. In a knowledge-based economy, there is no doubt that a better understanding of IPRs is indispensable to informed policy making in all areas of development.
Empirical evidence on the role of intellectual property protection in promoting innovation and growth remains inconclusive. Diverging views also persist on the impacts of IPRs to development prospects. Some point out that, in a modern economy, the minimum standards laid down in the WTO Agreement on Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) will bring benefits to developing countries by creating the incentive structure necessary for knowledge generation and diffusion, technology transfer and private investment flows. Others stress that intellectual property, especially some of its elements, such as the patenting regime, will adversely affect the pursuit of sustainable development strategies by: raising the prices of essential drugs to levels that are too high for the poor to afford; limiting the availability of educational materials for developing country school and university students; legitimising the piracy of traditional knowledge; and undermining the self-reliance of resource-poor farmers.
It is urgent, therefore, to ask the question: How can developing countries use Intellectual Property (IP) tools to advance their development strategy? What are the key concerns surrounding issues of IPRs for developing countries? What are the specific difficulties they face in intellectual property negotiations? Is intellectual property directly relevant to sustainable development and to the achievement of agreed international development goals? How can we facilitate technological flows among all countries? Do they have the capacity, especially the least developed among them, to formulate their negotiating positions and become well informed negotiating partners? These are essential questions that policy makers need to address in order to design IPR laws and policies that best meet the needs of their people and negotiate effectively in future agreements.
To address some of these questions, the ICTSD Programme on Intellectual Property and Sustainable Development was launched in July 2000. One central objective has been to facilitate the emergence of a critical mass of well-informed stakeholders in developing countries — including decision makers, negotiators and also the private sector and civil society — who will be able to define their own sustainable human development objectives in the field of IPRs and effectively advance them at the national and international levels.
We hope you will find this study a useful contribution to the debate on intellectual property and sustainable development and particularly on the adequate conceptual framework for technology transfer and dissemination to countries in their various stages of development.