TRIPS COUNCIL MATTERS

Thank you very much, first of all, to Ambassador Sørli for his status report of the work on the TRIPS Council. I think the report is factual, objective and accurately reflects the developments there. The truth is, as we know, despite our many discussions on these topics, members are still finding it difficult to move toward consensus on these issues. I think we all agree that we need a substantive Trade and Health outcome at MC12. One which promotes vaccine production and supports equitable vaccine distribution for all the reasons that other colleagues have stated.

Where we find ourselves rather at odds is on the most effective way to deliver those outcomes. For our own part, we believe that the Intellectual Property system has been a critical enabler of our response through this awful pandemic through the extraordinary success in developing the number of effective vaccines that we have today. And indeed, the therapeutics and diagnostics which we have seen great news on just in the last few days. We do know that production is rising to the levels that we all aspired to. Production reached 7.5 billion doses last month and we are still on course to get to 12 billion by the end of this year. With more manufacturing partnerships being signed, support for local production, and we really welcome for example the announcement just last month that Pfizer BioNtech signed a deal with Eurofarma in Brazil for COVID-19 vaccine production and scale up.

It’s also a harsh reality, very eloquently expressed by colleagues around the room this morning, that far too many people are still not receiving the vaccines. There is clearly a problem with equitable access and distribution and practical issues too about the delivery of those vaccines. This is a multifaceted challenge and on the intellectual property side we are certainly willing to consider ways in which IP can be harnessed more effectively, particularly to promote production partnerships. We welcome pragmatic suggestions some members have made in this regard. Finding ways to promote voluntary licensing and tech transfer are clearly a vital part in this effort. But the solution of vaccine distribution and equity goes well beyond IP, we have discussed this in many fora here. It relies on identifying key bottlenecks that companies are facing in production, distribution and administration of vaccines across the whole product chain and acting to remove those bottlenecks that bite hardest on that supply chain. That includes action to constrain trade restrictive measures, and promote trade facilitation, issues that have been taken up in the Trade and Health initiative which colleagues have ready referred to this morning and which we continue to strongly support and would like to see reflected at MC12.

A solution on vaccine distribution and equity also requires proper support for COVAX. We have ourselves provided around three quarters of a billion US Dollars to COVAX and are also sharing 100 million doses of vaccines from the UK. The UK is committed to a multifaceted and pragmatic response at MC12 and we will work hard, with colleagues to achieve that outcome.

PREPARATIONS FOR THE TWELFTH SESSION OF THE MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE

Thank you chair for your updates. I am speaking on behalf of Ambassador Manley who has competing commitments. I will only comment in detail on the MC12 outcome document. Before I do, I would like to express the UK’s support for the statement by Canada on behalf of the TAHI cosponsors. Turning to the MC12 outcome document, I want to thank you for your efforts on moving forward these discussions and thank you for the draft language you have proposed and accompanying three questions that my colleagues in capital are currently considering. For now, I would just like to record three points. We think the outcome document needs to recognise the twin crises the world is facing right now: both the pandemic, and the climate crisis. This latter will be top of all our minds in late November coming hot on the heels of COP26 in Glasgow. As well as recording outcomes agreed at the conference, we should use the document to set a strong platform for our work post-MC12, not least on the critical question of WTO Reform. We should also seek to give guidance on the way forward on other issues important to our societies and businesses in the third decade of this 21st century. Including environment and climate change, gender, and services amongst others. While we should find consensus wherever we can, we should not be too afraid of constructive disagreements. If it helps us get an agreed document overall, we may need to accept recording the different views of members across certain issues. We look forward to continuing to engage in this process.

WORK PROGRAMME ON ELECTRONIC COMMERCE AND MORATORIUM ON IMPOSING CUSTOMS DUTIES ON ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSIONS

Thank you Chair, I’ll be brief. The United Kingdom is a strong supporter of the Moratorium on imposing customs duties on electronic transmissions and supports the position that it should be made permanent. The increasing uncertainty on the moratorium being extended at MC12 has resulted in an uptick of concerns from stakeholders. We therefore call on members to productively engage in discussions on extending the moratorium at MC12. Thank you.

TRADE RELATED CHALLENGES OF THE LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES AND WAY FORWARD: A DRAFT FOR MC DECISION

The UK remains alive to the challenges Least Developed Countries face to their graduation efforts and remains committed to working with LDCs to ensure they have the tools necessary to integrate into the rules-based international trading system.

The UK believes that graduation from LDC status is a positive development and that further integration into the multilateral trading system through taking on increasing commitments helps developing countries improve their domestic economies.

Like other members, we would therefore like to see more evidence of why the proposed blanket 12-year period of continued access to LDC provisions is necessary.

PROPOSED GENERAL COUNCIL DECISION ON PROCEDURES TO ENHANCE TRANSPARENCY AND IMPROVE COMPLIANCE WITH NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS UNDER WTO AGREEMENTS

Thank you Chair. We welcome this proposal being brought to the General Council again. While we’re rightly dedicating much time in the lead up to MC12 on critical policy issues like fisheries subsidies, trade and health and agriculture, we would be remiss to overlook this opportunity to make a less noticed but highly significant contribution at the conference to improving the way our system works. These are a set of changes that would not only improve the way that we monitor each other’s adherence to the principles we have commonly agreed, but also make it easier to update those rules in future, improving our common understanding of the landscape of global trade. This is, in other words, an idea whose time has come. With that in mind I am delighted to welcome the new cosponsors, as named by our colleague from the US. I hope members can recognise the way cosponsors have listened to and responded to feedback received during outreach on this proposal and can see that significant shifts have been made in recent versions of the proposal. We encourage members to review the latest text and cosponsors remain open to further discussions on this as we move toward MC12.

PAPER TITLED “THE LEGAL STATUS OF ‘JOINT STATEMENT INITIATIVES’ AND THEIR NEGOTIATED OUTCOMES” BY INDIA, SOUTH AFRICA AND NAMIBIA

Thank you Chair. The United Kingdom has intervened on this proposal at previous General Councils, setting out our strong support for the joint initiatives which have brought much needed energy and dynamism to the WTO. Chair, while it is perfectly fine to have a conversation about the legal status of our work on different issues at the WTO, and as our colleague from the EU said, this is an important conversation, such a conversation should not be divorced from the reality of the people we serve and why we are sent here to Geneva. Last week’s Public Forum was a timely reminder of the fact that business and civil society expects us to make progress on the issues that matter to them in the third decade of the 21st century. We should therefore be actively engaged in working out together how we can enable that and not in blocking progress on it. That should be the teller of discussion on our initiatives and is how the UK will continue to engage in this area. Thank you.

The UN Human Rights Council concluded its 48th session on Friday, adopting important resolutions on Syria, Somalia, Afghanistan, Burundi, Libya, and child and early forced marriage, among many other pressing issues.

The UK supported the Council’s adoption of the resolution on Afghanistan, which calls for an immediate end to human rights abuses and violations and the establishment of an inclusive Government, as well as appointing a Special Rapporteur to monitor human rights. I call on the Taliban to co-operate with the UN, international partners and the new Special Rapporteur, and to uphold human rights, especially those of women, girls and minorities.

I am pleased that the Council has adopted the Syria resolution, which highlights the Commission of Inquiry’s latest findings, confirming that appalling atrocities continue. The recent escalating violence and renewed use of siege tactics in Dar’aa prove the Syrian regime’s willingness to keep devastating the lives of ordinary civilians. It is vital that we send a message to the people of Syria that their plight is not forgotten.

I welcome the Council’s adoption of the resolution on Somalia, reflecting concern for the absence of substantial progress, particularly on sexual and gender-based violence, violations against children and media freedom. Nonetheless, I commend Somalia’s engagement with the international community during a challenging period, overshadowed by delays to the electoral process. I urge Somalia to take tangible steps to implement its human rights commitments; the UK stands ready to support these efforts.

I welcome the Council’s adoption of a resolution on human rights in Burundi, which the UK co-sponsored. We note that progress has been made over the past year, but remain concerned about ongoing reports of human rights violations and abuses, and impunity for perpetrators. The UK continues to call on the Government to cooperate with all UN human rights mechanisms, including the new Special Rapporteur, and to reopen the OHCHR office in Burundi.

The UK is a strong supporter of the Fact Finding Mission on Libya and we are pleased the Council adopted the resolution on Libya. We welcome many of the elements of the resolution that focus on addressing human rights violations and abuses, and that aim to provide accountability for the Libyan people. The Libyan authorities must take forward a programme of national reconciliation, to which the findings of the Fact Finding Mission will contribute.

I regret that the mandate of the Group of Eminent Experts on Yemen was not renewed. The UK voted in favour as we had in previous years. We remain concerned about reports of serious and wide-ranging human rights violations and abuses by parties to the conflict. The Group had a crucial role to play in providing ongoing reporting on the actions of parties. We continue to urge the parties involved to investigate these allegations and take action to promote and protect human rights.

I welcome the Council’s adoption of a resolution on the increase of child, early and forced marriage in times of crisis. We must urgently address this and focus our efforts on empowering girls to give them voice and control over their own lives. The resolution highlights the importance of ensuring girls realise their equal right to education, which can contribute towards ending CEFM.

We still have several concerns about the legal basis of the right to a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment. Nevertheless, we must tackle climate change and prevent further environmental degradation so, I’m pleased that we were able to vote in favour of this resolution. We further supported a resolution which creates a new special rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights in the context of climate change.

The UK is firmly committed to tackling all forms of racism in all its evil guises through the UN system, including antisemitism, xenophobia and related intolerance. We called a vote during this session on a resolution which repeatedly referenced the Durban process, given our deep concerns about antisemitism. The scourge of antisemitism must be tackled head on and tackled now. It is time to forge a new approach in eradicating racism.

We must come together to find the solution, it is time to act.

The scheme is designed to support women and minorities who are lawyers and entrepreneurs to enhance their skills, knowledge and work performance.

The British High Commission inaugurated the scheme last year which was led by Chevening alumni who mentored a total of 10 mentees (eight women and two men, including minorities) in 2020. The participants benefitted in various facets of leadership enabling them to become thought leaders.

The three-month mentorship programme under the second phase will include one-on-one leadership sessions and group discussions with the mentors. Lawyers and entrepreneurs will learn to navigate challenges in their professions, particularly on gender rights and inclusion, allowing them to make a positive impact in their respective fields.

Later, Fouzia Younis addressed journalists at a local hotel and spoke about the Chevening scholarship along with other areas of partnership between the UK and Pakistan. She also participated in the Women’s Walkathon at Gaddafi Stadium organised by FemGames and supported by Chevening alumna Fizza Abid.

Head of Communication, British High Commission, Fouzia Younis, said:

This is a trailblazing, alumni-led initiative designed to develop the leadership potential of female lawyers and entrepreneurs. In the first phase, 80% of the mentees were women, including 20% from ethnic minorities. Our Pakistan Chevening alumni are role models for many; I am delighted that they are using their UK experience to give back to others, and hope more will join them next year.

Chevening Mentor – Aasia Saail Khan said:

To give back to Pakistan is the essence of the Chevening scheme. Being a Chevening mentor, I was able to guide four women entrepreneurs through a bespoke capacity building programme. I helped them establish start-ups, and trained them on how to run online businesses and formally register them with the LCCI.

The UK Government’s Chevening Scholarship enables outstanding emerging leaders across Pakistan to pursue a fully funded one-year master’s degrees in the UK. It is a unique opportunity to develop leadership potential, network with students from across the world, and experience the best of first class education UK has to offer. Online application window is now open to receive applications for academic year 2022-23. The deadline to submit applications is 02 November 2021.

Notes to editors:

The British High Commission supports inclusion, education and opportunity for all. Over the years, BHC has made efforts to encourage more women to apply, as a result of which female scholars have risen from just 6% in 2013 to around 60% this year. Anyone who has the ambition, curiosity, a clear vision for the future and the ability to achieve goals should apply for a Chevening Scholarship. Selected scholars will join a community of over 50,000 alumni worldwide. Since 1983, around 2,000 Pakistani have been awarded the Chevening Scholarship. To apply and for more information please visit our website

Chevening alumni who will lead the Chevening mentoring scheme in 2021 include entrepreneur, pharmacist, and gender consultant Aasia Saail Khan; lawyer and entrepreneur Hassan Shah; founder and Pollinator RBI (Responsible Business Initiative) Ambreen Waheed; strategic communications advisor and founder of Pakistan Professional Women Forum Gulalai Khan; and economist and social protection specialist Adeela Khalid among others. These alumni have studied from the UK’s top universities and are passionate to contribute back to society to bring positive change through a mentoring scheme. Through this alumni led initiative, each Chevening alumni will provide learning opportunity to at least two mentees.

Prominent Chevening female alumni include: Amna Zamir Shah, the first female judge in Gilgit-Baltistan High Court; Abia Akram, Chairperson Special Talent Exchange Programme (STEP); Fifi Haroon, a senior journalist; Yasmeen Rehman, former Member National Assembly; and Asiya Nasir and Nafeesa Shah who are both Members of the National Assembly of Pakistan.

Last year over 3,000 potential candidates applied for the Chevening Scholarship in Pakistan. For updates on the British High Commission, please follow our social media channels:

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