Protecting Geographical Indication (GI) under the TRIPS Agreement: Scope of Developing Countries and Least Developed Countries (LDC)s to Protect their Products against Biopiracy

Abstract

Geographical Indication determines the place of origin of a particular good with the essentials as to the quality and cultural indication. Bio piracy of traditional knowledge often conflicts with the geographical protection mechanism. The developing and the least developing countries are the most afflicted where relevant legal processes can ease this journey of protecting the rights of individuals. The Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement, 1995 plays an indispensable role in signifying the GI protection. It assisted in framing the national mechanisms of countries to make a suitable format that can be followed outright. Due to several challenges, the agreement tried to make the process comprehensible yet questioned in respective fields. The practice of bio piracy in several countries is a matter of concern as it directly affects the right of geographical indication. A respectable number of cases are made where the lack of knowledge concerning intellectual property rights is visible whereas the members of developing and the least developing countries are high in number. The dual or mutual protection process given by the multilateral agreement should cover the indigenous rights of the communities, their domain of knowledge and their traditional apprehension followed by the goods or products or knowledge of a certain origin. The paper indulges into the concern and diversion of TRIPS Agreement while protecting the Geographical Indication in places of origin preventing the malpractice of bio piracy and concludes with the processing of mitigating the challenges.