Roundtable turns its focus to the pharma industry and invites you

Roundtable turns its focus to the pharma industry and invites you

By Afro-Buff   Monday, November 13, 2017   No comments:

This is an invitation to a roundtable discussion on the harm of illicit trade and the role of trade mark counterfeiting within the pharmaceutical industry organised by the Companies & Intellectual Property Commission in association with the South African Liquor Brand Owners Association.

The roundtable is part of a series that envisages examining the role of counterfeiting as part of illicit trade in the various industry sectors. 

The objective is to foster collaboration between industry and government to combat trade mark counterfeiting and address the importance of cooperation, capacity building and education of all role players and stakeholders.  Special emphasis will be placed on a strategy to ensure efficient enforcement to combat the trade in counterfeit goods.   

The enforcement of intellectual property rights is one of the crucial cornerstones of economic growth. This interactive session will focus further on the challenges in the pharmaceutical industry, remedies that are available and how to access them. 

The importance of creating awareness to ensure that the general public is protected will also be discussed.  The Roundtable will provide a platform through which government can reach out to industry and simultaneously create awareness of the harmful effects of illicit trade on consumers.

Topics to be discussed:

-       The role of government in the fight against counterfeit trade.

-       The value of applying for and securing formal brand protection through registered trade marks is often dismissed or overlooked, which has the potential to expose a brand to significant risk.

-       Why formal trade mark registrations should be considered as part of any brand protection strategy – and should be considered early,

-       The remedies available in the Counterfeit Goods Act, 1997.

-       The role of the MCC.

-       Cross Border Protection The African Continent- Vanessa Ferguson Senior Partner Kisch IP.   

-       Current critical issue IMSA.

-       Traceability Solution.

High quality brands are losing market share due to the excessive inflow and manufacture of second rate counterfeit products.  Formulating a strategic approach to collaborate can facilitate how these industries align their strategies to win against a common threat. 

Relevant industry players will partake in a panel discussion

RSVP: here and find our more about upcoming get-togethers, at the Waterholes.

Read More

Independent generic drugs manufacturing: Can South Africa pull it off?

Independent generic drugs manufacturing: Can South Africa pull it off?

By IPcommentator   Friday, June 13, 2014   No comments:

Not too long ago, fellow Leo, Caroline Ncube, shared the news about South Africa's restructured cabinet, from which this Leo learnt that the outspoken Health Minister is still in power. It means that we should expect proactive health policies in South Africa such as the news reaching us via Independent Online (IOL). The question is: Can South Africa pull it off? [Afro Leo reminds me that South Africa did deliver on the World Cup]

In summary, IOL states that: "....South Africa set to establish its own, independent pharmaceutical plant in the next five years, aimed at making life-saving drugs cheaper for millions of citizens in need." It then elaborates that the the government currently operates local joint ventures (PPP) with Big Pharma to manufacture certain medicines/vaccines (e.g. here) and that a previous plan to establish a local manufacturing plant for anti-retroviral medicines failed last year. Further, it states that the country currently lacks adequate human capacity in pharmacology - something that is being addressed with the help of the 'world's pharmacy', India. In all, the idea behind this grand plan is to increase access to affordable medicines, create jobs, and make the country less dependent on imports. [Who are the largest exporters?]

Commentary
Good health is key to economic growth

It is generally accepted (also see e.g., here and here) that there is a link between the health of a nation's population and its economic development. [Afro Leo understands (also via here) that the UK Government created the National Health Service (NHS) because it believed that a population with good health will drive the much needed economic growth after the second world war] In a recent piece titled, 'Revitalizing Africa's Pharmaceutical Industry', the African Development Bank Group (ADBG) succinctly explained why African countries should invest more in the healthcare sector - particularly, local pharmaceutical capacity. Well, ADBG will be pleased with this news as well as with Morocco - a country looking to become the leading manufacturer of quality generic drugs.

Access to affordable medicines - A global issue
More importantly, this news also reminded this Leo about Max Planck Institute's Declaration on patents. Indeed, with access to affordable medicines, human lives can be saved for a few months or many years. Many, this Leo included, immediately think of developing countries - especially in Africa - when we see or hear the phrase 'access to medicines'. That would be expected since there are more articles such as this one. However, what is quickly forgotten - often quite rightly when comparisons are made - is that the access to medicines problem also exists in developed countries.

Take the UK as an example: there are news headlines (unsurprisingly, some are inaccurate) such as 'NICE rejects kidney cancer drug everolimus' and 'England's cancer drugs fund under strain as NICE rejects oncology medicines'.[More of these can be found here, here, here, here, here, here and here] Most argue that the patent regime (due to R&D) plays a role behind these headlines. Could these be used to validate Max Planck's observation that IP (especially, patent) problems are not exclusive to developing countries? 

There are tricky (often moral) questions in the access to medicines debate including the impact of IP rights on affordability. Anyway, if this news is true, time will tell if it's a good idea for the government to be handling this sort of project or to focus on creating conducive and favourable conditions for the private sector to deliver the grand plan. [Afro Leo thinks that governments often like to build and, many years later, hand over to the private sector to enjoy]

-----

To see NICE's decisions on medicines and other related medical products, click here

For a short summary of NICE's rejections, especially cancer medicines, is here

Read More

South Africa takes on big pharma but at what risk

South Africa takes on big pharma but at what risk

By Darren Olivier   Monday, January 20, 2014   No comments:

Reuters here

Fresh from a break and an office move to Johannesburg, this blogger wishes all Afro-IP readers belated best wishes for 2014. 

Gripping news this week is South Africa's response to news of big pharma's campaign against the draft reforms in the IP policy document reported on extensively by Afro-IP late last year (search "IP Policy notes").

The Minster of Health has called the leak of IPASA's planned campaign a "conspiracy of satanic magnitude". In response, big pharma are saying that they will reduce investment in the country. You can read all about it here, here and here.

This row comes at an interesting time for the generics industry in South Africa and the local drugs industry in general. The latest reported news on the planned takeover of one of South Africa's major generics, Adcock Ingram, is that the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) intends vetoing the deal next month. Commentators are suggesting that it may just be that PIC do not want a South African asset to be owned by a Chilean company. 

These two developments may be completely co-incidental but is there not a real risk that read together and bearing in mind RSA's other protectionist IP laws and ongoing labour problems, any overseas investor right now with a wad of cash to spend in Africa in the pharma sector (generics or not) is going to feel that South Africa is an inhospitable, unrewarding destination? Is this good for access to life saving drugs?

Please look out for the traditional First January Post, coming soon.

Read More

Uganda’s New Industrial Property Act, Almost

Uganda’s New Industrial Property Act, Almost

By Afro Ng'ombe   Friday, September 27, 2013   No comments:

Having been out hunting for awhile – and let me tell you, it’s not easy for a vegetarian lion; soy okapi is just not readily available everywhere – this Little Leo is catching up on news that she missed and missed sharing with you.

Last month, Uganda’s Parliament passed an updated version of the Industrial Property Bill (2009). [Full text pdf of 2009 version.]  The Bill was originally presented in 2009 but was lost in the shuffle of elections and rotating parliamentarians.  The Bill will become law when (is this an “if”? Afro Leo wonders) the President signs it.

The Industrial Property Bill is important for several reasons.  Uganda currently does not have a law relating to industrial property; this will be the first and should repeal the existing Patent and Design Acts, one of which is left over from colonial days.  ah, 1937, such a good year, or so my grandpa has said.  Henry Zakumumpa does a great job of explaining, in layman’s terms, why this Act is so important for the health of Uganda’s people, here.  Additionally, before being passed by Parliament, the original bill was modified to incorporate future potential TRIPs extensions. 

The full text of the passed Bill is not yet available.  However, there is a Report from the Sectoral Committee on Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, which worked on edits to the Bill.  Based on that, some interesting expected features of the Bill include a provision that allows for the protection of local herbs and medicines despite not protecting pharmaceuticals.  Pharmaceuticals are exempt from protection until at least 2016, but local herbs and medicines can be protected under Traditional Knowledge.  Another is the removal of a provision criminalizing patent infringement.  The full, revised bill will be very interesting to peruse.

Huge hat tip to Primah Kwagala for helping Afro-Leo understand the history of the Bill and it’s path.

Photo: almost-complete building in Entebbe, taken by Afro-Leo

Read More

Africa Pharmaceuticals Trademark Network?

Africa Pharmaceuticals Trademark Network?

By Asiimwe Paul   Wednesday, May 13, 2009   No comments:

I have mooted the idea of setting up an network of Trademark professionals interested in the issue of pharmaceuticals in Africa and it has received interest from some bloggers. Currently, Pharmaceuticals pose the greatest threat to human and animal life among the counterfeits that are ravaging Africa.

If you are not able to attend the INTA conference in Seattle and would like to discuss this idea further, please get in touch offline. Otherwise let us meet after the update on Africa May 20th at 11.30 am for those that will attend the conference.

Read More

Tanzania generic pharma sector set for growth

Tanzania generic pharma sector set for growth

By Jeremy   Friday, May 08, 2009   No comments:

The East African reports predictions of healthy growth in Tanzania's spend on generic medicines -- the annual figure will rise from $105 million now to $188 million by 2014, says consultancy Frost & Sullivan. Government and donor-supported programmes will account for most of this. The increased spend is reckoned to be a possible tonic for growth of local generics manufacture. In 2007 Tanzania had just eight drug manufacturing companies, compared to Kenya’s nearly 40.

According to World Trade Organisation (WTO) provisions, Tanzania is free to amend the Patents Act to exclude, until 1 January 2016, pharmaceutical products from protection through patents and undisclosed information.

The conclusion we can draw from this is that it's not the presence of patent laws that stimulates sectoral growth, but the presence of purchasers with money in their pockets and of people capable of providing them with something to spend.

Read More