Published online by Cambridge University Press: 04 May 2017
Over the years, many developing countries have attempted to make policies utilizing the WTO–TRIPS flexibilities to address the public health needs of their populations. A common strategic trend in these policies has been the tendency to attempt to increase access to medicines through price reduction, achieved by weakening patent protection. This paper, using the policy that has recently been adopted by the East African Community (EAC) member states as a case study, demonstrates the inappropriateness of this strategy. The core argument is that weakening patent protection will hinder further research and invention, which are necessary to ensure the availability of medicines. For developing countries, especially those in Africa, such as the EAC member states, the problem is aggravated by the fact that pharmaceuticals, due to commercial considerations, have already ignored investing in developing medicines for diseases predominant in these countries, hence the need to strengthen rather than weaken, patent protection.
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76 The Policy, supra note 7, para. 3.3.
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96 The Policy, supra note 7, para. 3.4.
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100 http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/trips_e/factsheet_pharm02_e.htm (accessed 10 July 2016).
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103 Ibid., para. 7.45.
104 Ibid.
105 TRIPS, supra note 21, Art. 30.
106 Canada – Patent Protection of Pharmaceutical Products, supra note 31, at para. 7.50.
107 http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/trips_e/factsheet_pharm02_e.htm (accessed 10 July 2016)
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142 The Policy, supra note 7, para. 3.11.
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144 Ibid., Art. 40.
145 The Policy, supra note 7, para. 3.11.
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