Intellectual property, trade and investment : a study of the pharmaceutical industry with special reference to Jordan

Samawi, GA

Abstract

The pharmaceutical industry in any country is primarily affected by the degree of
protection provided to intellectual property rights (IPRs). In a developed market, after a
drug is developed and approved, only the company that developed the drug can
manufacture it for a specified period of time. Jordan became a member of the World
Trade Organisation (WTO) in 2000. In order to gain admission to the WTO and obtain
trade access benefits, a country must agree to abide by the Agreement on Trade Related
Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), which covers a broad range of
intellectual property rights including patents, trademarks and trade secrets. TRIPS
establishes the minimum standards of protection in each of these areas; it also makes
enforcement provisions and includes a dispute resolution mechanism. Jordan was the
first Arab country to implement TRIPS and the Jordanian pharmaceutical industry was
affected by the implementation of the agreement.
This study contributes to the existing knowledge by providing information and data on
the Jordanian pharmaceutical industry and making appropriate policy recommendations.
It offers an in-depth understanding of the Jordanian pharmaceutical sector's argument
against joining the WTO and of how the industry suffered significantly after doing so in
2000. Jordanian pharmaceutical manufacturers can no longer produce in-patent drugs
not registered in Jordan, as they did under the more flexible IPR rules to which they had
been subject.
The study is the first of its kind to identify the processes through which the new IPR
legislation has impacted on the Jordanian pharmaceutical sector, how the new IPR rules
and regulations are supposed to motivate many multinationals to invest in Jordan,
considering the low setup costs, thus allowing the Jordanian pharmaceutical industry to
enter new markets. The study also indentifies the negative impact on the industry of
joining the WTO. Its key findings indicate that the industry was not ready for this
change and so was hard hit by the new IPR rules. The Jordanian pharmaceutical sector
received no foreign direct investment; R&D expenditure and the prices of drugs
increased; and exports to the US and European markets decreased, along with
production. As for employment, many jobs have already been lost and the future for
workers in the Jordanian pharmaceutical industry is uncertain.

Citation

Samawi, G. Intellectual property, trade and investment : a study of the pharmaceutical industry with special reference to Jordan. (Thesis). Salford : University of Salford

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Oct 3, 2012
• Award Date: Jan 1, 2009