India concerned over Kenya''s anti-counterfeit law
PTI | 07:10 PM,Oct 14,2010
Ruchi Kapoor Nairobi, Oct 14 (PTI)India today conveyed its concerns to Kenya over its Anti-Counterfeit Act which confuses Indian generic medicine, hailed worldwide for afford ability, with counterfeits. India's apprehensions were conveyed by visiting Commerce and Industry Anand Sharma when he met Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Amolo Odinga. Sharma highlighted Indian pharmaceutical industry's contribution to making available life-saving medicines at affordable prices, especially through generic route. He conveyed "India's concerns on attempts being made outside the WTO and WIPO (World Intellectual Property Rights Organisation) forums to confuse Indian generice medicines with counterfeits". Generics are off-patent drugs, an area in which India has established its global brand equity with about Rs 45,000 crore exports. Africa is a major market for the Indian pharma exports. Sharma said Kenya "may keep this in view while implementing the Anti-Counterfeit Act and the proposal to have a similar legislation at the East African Community (EAC) level". The Act, passed in 2008, did not make a distinction between the generic medicine and the counterfeit. It was challenged by NGOs and the healthcare organisations in the Kenya's Supreme Court on the ground that it would make medicine unaffordable. Addressing the gathering at the 'Namaskar Africa' event organised by the industry chamber FICCI and his ministry, Sharma said, the Indian pharmaceuticals are fully compliant with the WTO rules (Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights). He said "the life-saving drugs were unaffordable for poor people in Africa, Asia and South America because of (high) prices and there was a horde of MNCs' (multi-national companies) cartels and this battle was joined here". He said thanks to Indian medicine the cost of AIDS treatment has been reduced in Africa from USD 12,000 to USD 400 a year.
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