TRIPS Council formal meeting

June 8-9, 2021

Intervention

Thank you Mr. Chair.

Canada is committed to a comprehensive, global response to COVID-19 that leverages the entire multilateral system in supporting the research, development, manufacture, and distribution of safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines and other medical products.

Canada is ready to discuss proposals on a TRIPS waiver, in particular for COVID-19 vaccines, and remains committed to finding solutions and reaching an agreement that accelerates global vaccine production and does not negatively affect public health. Canada can support any consensus-based way ahead in this process, including text-based negotiations.

Canada will continue working closely with all WTO Members, including engaging on new proposals from any Member or group, in seeking a consensus-based outcome to address any intellectual property (IP) challenges created by COVID-19. In this regard, Canada thanks waiver co-sponsors for the revised proposal in WTO document IP/C/W/669/Rev.1, as well as the EU’s recent proposal on IP in document IP/C/W/680, and is prepared to engage on any proposals that will advance a consensus-based outcome towards addressing these challenges at the WTO.

More broadly, Canada continues to work closely with international partners as part of ongoing efforts towards ensuring the timely and equitable distribution of vaccines and medical products around the world, including the Trade and Health Initiative, and support for the WTO Director General’s ongoing engagement with developers and manufacturers of COVID-19 vaccines and medical products.

Canada’s focus is resolutely on the objective of getting more safe and effective COVID-19 medical products, in particular COVID-19 vaccines, to more people.

Thank you.