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Traditional Knowledge: A valuable
tool for Economic Development
Intellectual Property Rights Can Help Stimulate
the Economic Development of Least Developed Countries.
Columbia Law Journal, Vol. 27, No. 2, Winter 2004.
Traditional Knowledge:
Practices, knowledge of indigenous people and local communities
preserved through traditions, culture and folklore.
Uses of Traditional Knowledge
Significant source for commercial research, pharmaceuticals
(herbal treatment, medicinal plants, botanical medicine) agriculture
(farming, fishing recipes).
A starting point in 88 plant-based compounds used in pharmaceutical
medicine worldwide.
TK Revenues Generated
1990, $61 billion plant based medicine sold worldwide;
Indian rice breeding grossed 46.1 million.
TK can stimulate eco-tourism.
Visitors desire to experience indigenous culture, local performance,
voodoo ceremonies.
From 1987-1995, Sales of indigenous art and souvenirs grossed
to $46 million annually; artisan in US tribes made $800 million
in annual sale.
TK has intrinsic and spiritual values that are priceless.
Examples of TK in Haiti
Herbal Treatment commonly referred to as “Remed Fey”
(asowosy, lalwa, kowosol).
Massage therapy (maskrity, derisin, lavman).
Folkloric dance, Indigenous Art (Artisanat).
Voodoo Ceremonies and Healing…
Lack of protection of TK
International IP community is reluctant to extend protection
to traditional knowledge.
TRIPS does not offer any protection for Tk either.
Tk is regarded as being archaic with no clearly identifiable
inventors.
Need To Protect TK
Biopiracy-- Misappropriation of TK to secure exclusive rights
in developed countries where the money is good (Neem patent
4,946,681 known in India for toothpaste, pesticide); Tumeric
patent 5,401,504 for speeding healing of wounds).
Need to Protect TK (cont’d)
Misappropriation of indigenous knowledge for mass production
results in de-culturization erasing the significance of TK
in public’s memory.
Lack of protection of TK gives rise to a loss of revenues
in LDCs like Haiti.
Efforts to Protect TK
Conference on Biological Diversity (CBD), art. 8j seeks to
protect TK within the borders of member countries.
CBD Seeks to protect TK as a way to generate revenues for
LDCs and developing countries.
Recommendations
International Level:
Haiti should join CBD to lobby WIPO and WTO to extend protection
to Traditional Knowledge in all TRIPS member countries.
Domestic Level:
while complying with TRIPS requirements, Haiti should seek
to craft its IP System to protect Traditional Knowledge.
Conclusion
These measures will allow LDCs like Haiti to derive economic
benefit from Traditional Knowledge in the same way developed
countries derive economic benefit from technological knowledge
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