Lessons from India and Thailand for Cambodia's future implementation of the TRIPS Agreement for pharmaceutical patents

Cambodia is expected to graduate from least developed country (LDC) status in the near future, at which time it will be required to make patents available for pharmaceutical products and processes to meet its obligations under the Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). Given its impending transition from LDC status, there is a need to balance Cambodia's intellectual property (IP) policies and regulations with public health priorities to ensure access to affordable life-saving medicines. This will be critical to achieving universal health coverage, one of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals. This paper examines Cambodia's IP laws and regulations to identify provisions which could reduce access to affordable generic medicines when it starts to grant patents for pharmaceuticals. It systematically compares Cambodia's IP laws and regulations applicable to patents with those of Thailand and India—two developing countries which have had some successes in preserving access to medicines despite the introduction of pharmaceutical patents. It identifies lessons for Cambodia from the experiences of Thailand and India in implementing TRIPS and using TRIPS flexibilities such as compulsory licensing to ensure access to a sustainable supply of affordable generic medicines. India's experience of implementing TRIPS offers a practical and valuable lesson in applying TRIPS for the greatest public benefit. Thailand, although it has not utilised TRIPS flexibilities as extensively as India, also offers valuable lessons in adapting and interpreting IP law to ensure sustainable access to generic medicines, especially in relation to compulsory licencing. Key recommendations for reform for Cambodia include strengthening the use of preventive and remedial TRIPS flexibilities and removing criminal sanctions for patent infringements. Cambodia should reject any TRIPS-plus provisions in its patent legislation, avoid membership of bilateral or plurilateral trade agreements that include TRIPS-plus provisions and avoid signing patent treaties and agreements designed to facilitate the granting of patents.