The impact of the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) on the right to health and the right to development: a study of the implementation of TRIPS in Zimbabwe.
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Date
2021
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Abstract
The right to health and the right to development are intertwined socio-economic rights that affect
the well being and growth of a country’s populace. Most developing and least developed countries
face challenges in ensuring access to essential medicines vis a vis the realisation of the right to health
and full potential of development. Patents, provided for under the TRIPS Agreement are partly to
blame for the lack of access to essential medicines as they account for the excessive pricing of
medicines.
Zimbabwe being a developing country currently facing dire economic and political challenges but
being obliged under the International and Regional Human Rights Conventions it subscribed to, has
to ensure the progressive realisation of the right to health and development. However, as a member
of the TRIPS Agreement, there are limitations to the country’s ability to ensure access to medicines
and healthcare for developmental purposes.
This thesis has outlined the problematic provisions of the TRIPS Agreement and Zimbabwe’s
attempt to use the flexibilities provided to its advantage. Zimbabwe has only put into use the
flexibility of compulsory licensing and parallel importation to a limited extent; hence the
recommendation that even though the country has domesticated the Agreement to its advantage, the
country needs to explore other flexibilities comprehensively and promote the realisation of the rights
to health and development.
Description
Masters degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban.