MSF response to signing of EFTA-India trade agreement
MSF Analysis on Final agreement-India EFTA.pdf
PDF - 180 Kb
Geneva/Delhi, 12 March 2024:
On 10 March 2024, it was announced that India and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) signed a free trade agreement (FTA) they have been negotiating since 2006. Full text of agreement along with Annex and the Record of Understanding has been published by EFTA. Based on MSF’s analysis (see attached), while some provisions that undermined generic competition from India were removed from the final text, going forward, certain clauses contained in Annex 8.A of the agreement and the ‘Record of Understanding on IP’ could dilute the use of some of the most important health-related flexibilities enshrined in the World Trade Organization TRIPS Agreement that are also included in the Indian patent law.
Though data exclusivity was not immediately adopted in the final text, according to the Record of Understanding on Intellectual Property, India and EFTA countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland) will discuss issues relating to this provision one year after this deal goes into effect.
Leena Menghaney, Head-South Asia, MSF Access Campaign
“While some provisions that undermined generic competition from India were removed from the main text of the final EFTA-India trade agreement, MSF is concerned that certain clauses related to intellectual property in this trade deal could significantly undermine the use of existing public health measures enshrined in Indian patent law – as these measures are important safeguards to curb the abuse of patent monopolies and support access to more affordable generic lifesaving medicines needed by people in India and other developing countries.”
“We urge the Indian government to push back on pressure to undermine pre-grant oppositions and continue rejecting damaging provisions such as data exclusivity that could delay competition among generic producers, which plays a crucial role in lowering medicines prices and ultimately saving lives.”
“Free trade agreements serve as blueprints for subsequent trade deals. So, setting harmful precedents in this agreement could have a negative knock-on effect on other agreements India is considering signing with other countries, and together, these could have a devastating impact on access to medicines for millions of people around the globe.”
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Shailly Gupta
+41-79 203 13 02 (also on WhatsApp)