2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

 

Call-center:
(+373-22) 400500

Anti-corruption line:
(+373-22) 400500

The Role of the Patent System in Solving Public Health Problems, Topic Discussed During a Regional Seminar

09/16/2021

The Regional Seminar entitled “The Role of the Patent System in Solving Public Health Problems” took place on September 15, this year. The event was organized in hybrid format by the State Agency on Intellectual Property (AGEPI), with the support of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the Eurasian Patent Office (EPO) and the EU Project “Support for Structured Policy Dialogue, Coordination of the Implementation of the Association Agreement and Enhancement of the Legal Approximation Process”.

The event was attended by representatives of intellectual property offices, as well as of other organizations with responsibilities in the field of intellectual property and public health from Armenia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Republic of Moldova, Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. The meeting was also attended by representatives of WIPO, EAPO, European Patent Office (EPO) and the EU Project.

In the opening of the event, the Director General of AGEPI, Eugeniu Rusu, welcomed the participants in the event and mentioned that: “The theme of this conference is not only current, but also very well anchored in time”, expressing hope that the seminar will facilitate the exchange of experience in this important field.

The President of the Eurasian Patent Office, Saule Tlevlesova, in her welcoming address to the participants, reiterated the importance of the seminar theme, especially in the conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic, and welcomed the interest shown by the states in the region for the topic addressed. Present at the event, Grigory Ivliev, Director General of the Federal Intellectual Property Service of the Russian Federation, appreciated AGEPI’s initiative to organize an event focused on such a topical issue for the participating states and informed about the latest actions taken by Russia in this context. Primož Vehar, the leader of the EU project, provided the hosts with the full support of the European Union for the implementation in the Republic of Moldova of a functional mechanism for managing compulsory licenses.

According to the work agenda, during the regional seminar were discussed several topics related to the international framework in the field of patents and public health, the implementation at national level of TRIPS flexibilities, in particular the implementation of the compulsory licensing regime in case of health emergencies. Participants exchanged information and views on measures taken to overcome the negative consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. The State Agency on Intellectual Property informed the participants in the event about the existing national legal framework in the field of patents, while also presenting the draft law developed by AGEPI with the support of European experts to ensure the harmonization of rules on the legal regime for granting compulsory licenses, in particular those related to the granting of patents in the field of health with European standards and practices.

Finally, the participants appreciated the usefulness of the regional seminar and showed their interest and willingness to continue the discussions in subsequent events to address other aspects related to intellectual property and providing patients with medicines.