WIPO’s COVID-19 Related Services and Support

WIPO Director General Daren Tang launched a package of support measures to assist member states in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic and building back better as part of their sustainable post-COVID economic recovery efforts. In October 2021, WIPO member states approved this WIPO COVID-19 response package as part of its Program of Work and Budget 2022/23 .

The package aims to help member states deal with the pandemic, as well as leverage intellectual property (IP) to support creativity, innovation and the entrepreneurship needed for job creation, investment, enterprise growth and socio-economic development.

The response package will be tailored to meet the individual needs of member states and will adapt as the pandemic evolves. WIPO, via the COVID-19 Focal Point, will engage in a continuous dialogue with member states, and is open to their requests for targeted and customized support with respect to national priorities and challenges.

In March 2022, briefing sessions were held for Member States to provide information about the planned and ongoing activities under the response package and how to access support.

Contact

Member states seeking more information should contact Mr. Sherif Saadallah, Executive Director of the WIPO Academy and Focal Point on WIPO’s Package of COVID-19 support.

Member states seeking more information on the WHO-WIPO-WTO Trilateral Cooperation relating to COVID-19 should contact Ms. Amy Dietterich, Director of the Global Challenges Division.

In Summary: WIPO's COVID-19 Response Package

A snapshot of key achievements and ongoing initiatives.

Areas of support

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Bilateral technical assistance

Tailored support to member states for COVID-19 economic recovery projects, including policy and legislative advice.

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Trilateral cooperation

Access resources at the intersection of IP, health, and trade through the WHO-WIPO-WTO trilateral cooperation.

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Policy and legislative assistance

Legislative and policy advice relating to IP, innovation and creativity.

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Skills and capacity building

Practical skills-building and training opportunities offered by the WIPO Academy.

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Innovation support

Access to specific policy, decision making and tools to respond to COVID-19 issues through WIPO Technology and Innovation Support Centers (TISCs).

IP dispute resolution

WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center services catered to the life sciences sector.

Knowledge resources

COVID-19, Innovative Firms and Resilience

WIPO published an economic research working paper on patent filings as a strong indicator for a company’s resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in manufacturing industries. The study shows that patent-intensive firms, especially those with R&D investments, have greater resilience and productivity. Read the COVID-19, Innovative Firms and Resilience publication to find out more about the relationship between intellectual property activity and economic resilience in industry, including policy insights.
WIPO ADR Options for Life Sciences Dispute Management and Resolution

The WIPO ADR Options for Life Sciences Dispute Management and Resolution publication was developed by the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center as part of WIPO’s COVID-19 support package for member states. The publication takes into account input from WIPO Arbitrators and Mediators specialized in life sciences.
Resilience and Ingenuity: Global Innovation Responses to COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly affected the ecosystems that spur innovation and creativity around the world. The e-book Resilience and Ingenuity: Global Innovation Responses to COVID-19 untangles how the pandemic shaped the innovation landscape of the world’s major economies, and how scientists, entrepreneurs and creative professionals responded to the crisis.
IP and Traditional Knowledge Language Packs

The IP and Traditional Knowledge Language Packs contain a series of short and practical print and audio information resources primarily aimed at indigenous and local community entrepreneurs. They include tips to protect and promote tradition-based products and services with intellectual property, including in the digital economy. The Language Packs were prepared as part of WIPO’s COVID-19 Response Package with the objective to support communities in their post-pandemic economic recovery and help them to be more resilient to future pandemic scenarios. They were translated into a number of indigenous, local and other languages to make this information available to a wider number of communities in their own languages.
COVID-19 IP Policy Tracker

WIPO tracks and provides information on measures adopted by IP offices in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including information connected to deadlines, legislative responses and other regulatory measures.
Database on Flexibilities in the IP System

The Database on Flexibilities in the IP System contains data drawn from WIPO documents on Patent Related Flexibilities in the Multilateral Legal Framework and their Legislative Implementation at the National and Regional Levels. It allows searches for implementation of flexibilities in national IP laws in selected jurisdictions.
Pat-INFORMED

The Patent Information Initiative for Medicines (Pat-INFORMED) provides easy access to medicine patent information to the global health community, particularly those involved in procurement of medicines. Users can easily find information on a medicine’s patent status in a particular country and other available information on PATENTSCOPE, WIPO’s own global patent database. Pat-INFORMED also provides a facility for procurement agencies to make follow-up inquiries directly with participating companies.
Patent Landscape Reports (PLR) and analytics

Patent Landscape Reports are a way of using patent information and data to gather and share insights on technology developments. In 2022, WIPO published the PLR on COVID-19 Related Vaccines and Therapeutics, providing early observations on patenting activity and comparing results with clinical trial data for related candidate vaccines and drugs. An updated version of the report is due to be published in 2023. WIPO has also collected publicly available PLRs and has put together a searchable compilation.
PATENTSCOPE COVID-19 Index

PATENTSCOPE launched a COVID-19 search facility to provide scientists, engineers, public health policymakers, industry actors and members of the general public with an easily accessible source of intelligence for improving the detection, prevention, and treatment of diseases such as the novel coronavirus.

Dozens of search queries are now available, specially curated by patent information experts who have identified technological areas relevant to the detection, prevention and treatment of COVID-19 are available.
Promoting Access to Medical Technologies and Innovation (2021)

The second edition of the WHO-WIPO-WTO trilateral report on the intersections between public health, intellectual property and trade features an updated extract on an integrated approach to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 constitutes an extraordinary global public health crisis that has created a pressing need for intensified global cooperation. The updated information note maps the myriad challenges posed by the outbreak in relation to the integrated health, trade and IP policy frameworks. It provides cross-references to the relevant sections in the updated trilateral study. The text is available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish.
The Impact of COVID-19 on the Copyright Ecosystem

An information session exploring the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the copyright ecosystem was held during the 42nd Session of the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR), where amongst round table discussions, a report on “The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Creative Industries, Cultural Institutions, Education and Research” was presented.