18 January 2021
Geneva – Today, the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) and the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (the JRC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that will lay the foundation for cooperation between the two organisations in the field of intellectual property (IP) (patents, technologies and know-how) in health sector.
“Research and innovation is where our hopes lie in the fight against COVID-19,” said Charles Gore, the Executive Director of MPP. “The European Commission has played a very strong leadership role in the global response to COVID-19 and the JRC, as European Commission’s IP wing, will be a key partner for MPP in exploring together how management of IP can bring about access and contribute to ending this pandemic.”
“The JRC is exploring models of voluntary licensing and patent pooling to facilitate global and equitable access to health technologies to prevent, treat and cure COVID-19,” said Stephen Quest, Director General, the JRC. “MPP with its 10 years of proven experience in voluntary licensing is the most relevant public health organisation in this regard and we look forward to the impact that our collaboration will bring”.
Through the newly signed MoU, the two organisations will work together to (i) identify mechanisms and incentives to encourage the beneficiaries of EU funding to make available their IP through MPP, (ii) find synergies on common public health initiatives such as the ACT accelerator, and (iii) collaborate beyond COVID-19 on access to essential medicines, among other aims.
EU Commission recently reaffirmed its commitment to universal, equitable and affordable access to COVID-19 technologies and expressed support for rapid pooling of critical IP in times of crisis, for instance through a novel licensing system.
Access full MoU
About the JRC
The JRC, which is the science and knowledge service of the European Commission, consists of an array of Competence Centres including the European Commission’s Central Intellectual Property Service (CIPS) and the Centre of Competence for Technology Transfer (CCTT). CIPS manages the European Commission’s intellectual property rights (IPR), such as patents, copyrights, trademark, and provides legal advice on IP to the Commission services including on in/out licensing of IPR to third parties. CCTT provides technology transfer policy related expertise and services to the European Commission and other institutions of the Union and operational support services to a broader range of stakeholders facing technology transfer related challenges and issues.
Press and Media
The Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) is a United Nations-backed public health organisation working to increase access to and facilitate the development of life-saving medicines for low- and middle-income countries. Through its innovative business model, MPP partners with civil society, governments, international organisations, industry, patient groups, and other stakeholders to prioritise and license needed medicines and pool intellectual property to encourage generic manufacture and the development of new formulations.
To date, MPP has signed agreements with 22 patent holders for 13 HIV antiretrovirals, one HIV technology platform, three hepatitis C direct-acting antivirals, a tuberculosis treatment, a cancer treatment, four long-acting technologies, a post-partum haemorrhage medicine, three oral antiviral treatments for COVID-19 and 16 COVID-19 technologies.
MPP was founded by Unitaid, which continues to be MPP’s main funder. MPP’s work on access to essential medicines is also funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), Government of Canada, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the Government of Flanders. MPP’s activities in COVID-19 are undertaken with the financial support of the Japanese Government, the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, the German Agency for International Cooperation, and SDC.