27 May 2021
Geneva – The Board of the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) has decided to expand its mandate into the licensing of technology with an initial focus on COVID-19 vaccines and pandemic preparedness. In recognition of the increasing need for the licensing of know-how in addition to patents, MPP will be able to offer its expertise to pharmaceutical companies that understand the importance of voluntary public health licensing as a solution. It will also allow MPP to widen the scope of its support to the World Health Organization (WHO), the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator (ACT-A) and the COVID-19 Technology Access Pool (C-TAP).
During the recent Global Health Summit in Rome (21 May), French President Emmanuel Macron called for the ACT-A mandate to be expanded to include the production of vaccines, treatments, and diagnostic tests. During the meeting, the President said, “It is about accelerating production partnerships, technology transfers and know-how on all continents. For this, it is necessary to involve all stakeholders. GAVI and CEPI will need the expertise of the WHO, the resources of the World Bank, and above all the know-how in terms of technology transfers from the Medicines Patent Pool and Unitaid.”
Dr Mariângela Simão, Assistant Director-General Access to Medicines and Health Products at the World Health Organization, said, “In the fight against the pandemic, it is critical that low- and middle-income countries expand their capacity to produce COVID-19 vaccines. But we also need to look ahead to the longer term and give LMICs the capacity to produce further vaccines as they are needed as well as new treatments. If the pandemic has taught us anything is that we cannot afford to be in this situation ever again – we must now work together and achieve these equitable access solutions.”
Dr Marie-Paule Kieny, Chair of the MPP Governance Board, said, “Since the start of the pandemic, the MPP Board recognised the important role that MPP can play to increase access to life-saving products for those who need them most. With the expansion of MPP’s mandate into licensing of technology and the strong support from France, Japan, the UK and Norway, MPP is ready and able to build on our knowledge and experience to ensure access and increase production of vaccines and treatments in LMICs.”
Dr Philippe Duneton, Executive Director, Unitaid, said, “When Unitaid established MPP in 2010, many did not believe voluntary licensing could be done or that originator companies would come to the table, but they did. Today in HIV, millions of people in LMICs are taking high-quality, state of the art treatments at prices that were just unimaginable at the time. Unitaid fully trusts that in building on the MPP licensing model for technology transfer, we can again take the ‘impossible’ and make it a reality in public health.”
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[post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => disease-areas [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2025-07-10 12:24:03 [post_modified_gmt] => 2025-07-10 10:24:03 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 9 [guid] => https://medicinespatentpool.org/what-we-do/disease-areas/ [menu_order] => 16 [post_type] => page [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [1] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 8902 [post_author] => 14 [post_date] => 2021-05-12 15:45:36 [post_date_gmt] => 2021-05-12 14:45:36 [post_content] => Geneva – The Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) welcomes the report by the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response: "COVID-19: Make it the last Pandemic" published today. The report makes six urgent calls for action to stop the pandemic, including one that calls on the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) to convene major vaccine-producing countries and manufacturers to reach agreement on voluntary licensing and technology transfer arrangements for COVID-19 vaccines, including through MPP. With its experience in voluntary licensing, technology transfer and alliance management, MPP stands ready to support WHO, WTO, countries and manufacturers in this endeavour. "The current inequity in access to vaccines is a crisis that the world cannot ignore, and the report provides concrete recommendations on how to tackle this pandemic and avoid the next one", said Charles Gore. "We look forward to discussions during the upcoming World Health Assembly and a decision on how countries wish to address the current crisis and implement the recommendations of the Independent Panel. If countries wish MPP to take a central role, we are willing and able to do so.” Over the past 11 years, MPP has negotiated and implemented licensing and technology transfer agreements with pharmaceutical companies that have enabled manufacturers to develop, register and supply pharmaceuticals in over 140 countries, supply 18.5 billion doses of treatment through our sublicensees and generate savings of nearly USD 2 billion. MPP’s agreements have been recognised as best practice in terms of public health, because of their transparency, flexibility, non-exclusivity and inclusion of access-friendly terms and conditions. Much of our experience can be applied to COVID-19 vaccines, working hand-in-hand with other experts, organisations and companies that have complementary expertise. Notes: MPP was created in 2010 by Unitaid. At that time the world was also trying to address another crisis, HIV which was having a devastating effect in low- and middle-income countries due to the lack of access to quality affordable technologies. Through voluntary licensing, millions of people living with HIV have since received access to lifesaving treatments. Media enquiries: Gelise McCullough Head of Communications Mobile: +41 79 685 64 36 E-mail: gmccullough@medicinespatentpool.org [post_title] => MPP stands ready to assist WTO, WHO and vaccine-producing countries and manufacturers to ensure rapid, equitable access to vaccines for COVID-19 [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => mpp-ippr-report-covid-19-vaccines [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2021-05-12 16:12:58 [post_modified_gmt] => 2021-05-12 15:12:58 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://medicinespatentpool.org/?post_type=news-publications&p=8902 [menu_order] => 85 [post_type] => news-publications [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [2] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 8240 [post_author] => 14 [post_date] => 2021-01-18 09:45:21 [post_date_gmt] => 2021-01-18 09:45:21 [post_content] => 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. [post_title] => MPP and the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission partner in the field of intellectual property for COVID-19 and beyond [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => mpp-eu-commission-mou-covid19-ip [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2021-01-15 14:31:24 [post_modified_gmt] => 2021-01-15 14:31:24 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://medicinespatentpool.org/?post_type=news-publications&p=8240 [menu_order] => 124 [post_type] => news-publications [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [3] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 7697 [post_author] => 14 [post_date] => 2020-11-12 00:01:38 [post_date_gmt] => 2020-11-12 00:01:38 [post_content] => [post_title] => COVID-19 Open Pledge [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => mpp_global_manufacturers_open_pledge [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2022-01-06 16:03:08 [post_modified_gmt] => 2022-01-06 16:03:08 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 9566 [guid] => https://medicinespatentpool.org/?page_id=7697 [menu_order] => 3 [post_type] => page [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [4] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 1346 [post_author] => 1 [post_date] => 2020-03-31 17:49:16 [post_date_gmt] => 2020-03-31 16:49:16 [post_content] => Geneva, 31 March 2020 – The Board of the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) has decided to temporarily expand its mandate to include any health technology that could contribute to the global response to COVID-19 and where licensing could facilitate innovation and access. With the support of Unitaid, this will allow MPP to offer its IP and licensing expertise to the World Health Organization (WHO) to assist the global effort in any way it can. Both MPP and Unitaid underline their commitment to jointly ensure equitable and timely access to medicines and diagnostics by the most vulnerable populations, as stressed in the G20 Leaders’ 26 March 2020 Statement. Marie-Paule Kieny, Chair of the MPP Governance Board, said, “In these difficult times, the MPP Board recognises the important role that MPP can play to increase access to life-saving products for those who need them most. And importantly, with time of the essence, to ensure that we make use of the expertise and mechanisms that already exist.” Marisol Touraine, Chair of the Unitaid Executive Board and former French Minister of Health and Social Affairs, said, “Unitaid is fully engaged in the global response to COVID-19 and supports the call by the President of Costa Rica for voluntary pooling of intellectual property rights for medicines and diagnostics to promote the global fight against COVID-19. The Medicines Patent Pool, set up and funded by Unitaid a decade ago, has a proven track record and is immediately available to the WHO to begin this urgent work.” The MPP decision follows the 27 March 2020 announcement by Unitaid to commit an initial US$30 million of investment to innovative treatment, diagnostics and respiratory triage tools as part of the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the start of the outbreak MPP has regularly updated its patent intelligence database, MedsPaL, with the status of candidate products. The database will continue to be updated as new patented candidates emerge. For more information: Gelise MCCULLOUGH | +41 79 685 64 36 | press@medicinespatentpool.org Martin HARVEY ALLCHURCH | +41 79 249 35 29 | harveym@unitaid.who.int [post_title] => The Medicines Patent Pool and Unitaid respond to access efforts for COVID-19 treatments and technologies [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => the-medicines-patent-pool-and-unitaid-respond-to-access-efforts-for-covid-19-treatments-and-technologies [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2020-05-20 09:51:42 [post_modified_gmt] => 2020-05-20 08:51:42 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://medicinespatentpool.org/?post_type=news-publications&p=1346 [menu_order] => 223 [post_type] => news-publications [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) ) [number_of_posts_to_show] => -1 [post_type] => news-publications [disease_styles] => [news_publication_type] => [people_type] => [company_type] => [story_type] => [include_filters] => [show_images] => 1 [show_events_from_date] => all ) )
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.