The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) and the Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Association of the Philippines (PHAP) have joined hands in their bid to stamp out fake medicines sold online.
IPOPHL and PHAP signed last April 8 the two memoranda of understanding with PHAP aimed at responding to the the challenges posed by illicit activities online.
In one of the agreements, PHPA will become a part of the E-Commerce memorandum of understanding (MOU) initiated in 2021 with online platforms Lazada, Shopee, TikTok Shop and Zalora and brand owners to streamline ways in preventing and taking down online activities that infringe on the latter’s IP rights.
“By establishing a code of practice and enhancing collaboration between signatories, we aim to create a safer online trading environment for all stakeholders, from notice and takedown procedures to proactive and preventive measures we are committed to upholding the principles of fairness and transparency in the digital domain,” said Teodoro Padilla, PHAP executive director.
Rowel Barba, IPOPHL director-general, said PHAP’s inclusion to the E-Commerce MOU expands the membership of the anti-counterfeiting campaign to 37.
In a separate MOU, PHAP also vowed to to draft the work plan to execute deliverables on schedule.
The agreements lay down a framework for knowledge-sharing on areas and topics of mutual interest such as emerging schemes used to distribute counterfeit drugs in the market and rules on ethical collaboration among healthcare service and technology providers, as well as consultations on legislative measures such as the amendments to the IP Code of 1997 and the Pharmaceutical Innovation Bill, which are legislative measures that are vital to the goals of both IPOPHL and PHAP.
The signatories will also be undertaking policy dialogue on areas that may strengthen the country’s IP regime for healthcare innovation and create joint anti-counterfeiting campaigns or other IP awareness activities.
