Which WTO ministerial conference adopted the Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health?

The Doha Ministerial Conference adopted the Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health.

WTO members adopted the declaration on 14 November 2001 during the Fourth WTO Ministerial Conference in Doha, Qatar. It clarified that the TRIPS Agreement should be interpreted and implemented in a way that supports members’ rights to protect public health and promote access to medicines.

The declaration confirmed that members may grant compulsory licences and determine the grounds for doing so. It also recognized that countries with insufficient pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity needed a solution for obtaining medicines under compulsory licences issued elsewhere. That issue later led to a 2003 WTO decision and a subsequent TRIPS amendment.

The declaration did not suspend or replace TRIPS. Instead, it provided an agreed interpretation of flexibilities within the agreement. It is often confused with the Doha Development Round, which was also launched at the 2001 conference but is a separate WTO negotiating process.