Indian drug patents, access to ITC and Nigerian women helped by Coca-Cola
Novartis is denied drug patent in India
In a landmark ruling, India’s supreme court has ruled against Novartis’s request to patent Glivec, a drug used to treat certain forms of cancer.
The company’s patent pursuit began in 1997, when Novartis filed its initial application in India. Over the subsequent 16 years, Novartis fought to overturn a clause in Indian patent law that restricts patent protection for newer forms of existing drugs. Despite these efforts, the patent was continuously vetoed by multiple levels of government, until the case ultimately reached the supreme court and was rejected last month.
Some have hailed the ruling as a major win for patients, who can continue to buy the drug generically and at lower cost than the branded version. Novartis claims, however, that the decision hampers innovative drug discovery.
“We brought this case because we strongly believe patents safeguard innovation and encourage medical progress, particularly for unmet medical needs,” says Ranjit Shahani, vice-chairman and managing director of Novartis India. “This ruling is a setback for patients that will hinder medical progress for diseases without effective treatment options.”
Novartis stresses that its donation programme in India provides Glivec without charge to 95% of patients who are prescribed the drug (currently reaching 160,000 patients). The remaining 5% are reimbursed, insured, or participate in a co-pay programme.
The digital divide
A new report by the World Economic Forum and the European Institute of Business Administration (Insead) reveals growing digital divides between countries’ abilities to use information and communication technology to deliver competitive edge and economic growth.
The 12th edition of the Global Information Technology Report employs the networked readiness index (NRI) to analyse 144 economies’ ICT structure, encompassing more than 98% of global GDP. The index evaluates 54 indicators in four key areas: how friendly a country’s market and regulatory framework are to advancing ICT; how well equipped society is to utilise ICT; how willing individuals, businesses and government are to increase their use of ICT, and how ICT is currently affecting a nation’s economy and society.
The latest results show that two geographical regions have come out on top: northern European economies and the Asian Tigers. The top 10 countries in descending ranking are: Finland, Singapore, Sweden, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, the UK, Denmark, the US and China.
In the case of Asia’s best-performing economies, governments most often serve as the driving force behind ICT innovation. At the same time, the report highlights the fact that Asia has the world’s largest regional digital divide between its best performers and its worst.
Sub-Saharan Africa has made significant strides in expanding its ICT infrastructure, but the costly nature of technology, poor local tech acumen, and “unfavourable business conditions for entrepreneurship and innovation” have all stymied growth. As a result, Sub-Saharan African countries hold nine out of the bottom 10 rankings.
“This analysis shows how matching investments in ICT with investment in skills and innovation can help economies cross a ‘magic threshold’, beyond which return on investment increases significantly,” says Bruno Lanvin, executive director of Insead’s eLab, and co-editor of the report. “Individual countries need to identify what separates them from reaching that threshold if they have not reached it yet, in order to fulfil long-term growth, competitiveness and innovation targets.”
Coke and IFC help women in business
Drinks giant Coca-Cola and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, have joined forces to launch a $100m, three-year initiative that will provide thousands of female entrepreneurs with much-needed access to investment in Africa and Eurasia.
The initiative fits squarely into both organisations’ programmes that support women in business. For Coca-Cola, it serves as part of the company’s 5by20 global initiative to empower five million women across its value chain by 2020, and for IFC it dovetails with its Banking on Women programme, which helps banks, corporations and chambers of commerce profitably support female-owned businesses.
Efforts are already under way in Nigeria, where IFC and Coke are working alongside Access Bank to provide $22m in financing as well as business training to women micro-distributors in Coke’s value chain, in collaboration with its local bottling partner, Nigerian Bottling Company.
“Women entrepreneurs make significant contributions to emerging and developing economies, yet have lower access to finance than their male counterparts,” says Nathan Kalumbu, president of Coca-Cola’s Eurasia and Africa group. “By providing greater access to capital, we are investing in our own success and the success of the communities we serve.”
Zara accused of slave labour in Argentina
Spanish high street retailer Zara is under investigation in Argentina over working conditions in a Buenos Aires garment factory allegedly making its garments.
The workers rights group La Alameda went into the factory undercover and caught on camera a group of immigrant workers, predominantly Bolivian, working in unsafe conditions for reportedly 12-16 hours a day, six days a week. Argentine authorities subsequently raided the factory on the basis of La Alemeda’s findings.
“We found men and children who lived in places where they worked,” says Juan Gomez Centurion, executive director of the Buenos Aires health and safety watchdog Agencia Gubernamental de Control. “They were not registered and they were living in terrible conditions. They had no official documents and were held against their will, [and] they were not allowed to leave their workplaces without permission.”
In response, a spokesman for Zara’s parent company, Inditex, says it has “zero tolerance [for] any abuse against workers” and has yet to receive an official complaint by any Argentine governmental department.
Inditex says its own investigation into the case showed no connection with Zara’s supply chain. “None of our suppliers respond to the parameters that the NGO is mentioning or fit with the information provided by the videos,” the spokesman says. Inditex also stresses that it has conducted 300 audits throughout its 60 Argentine suppliers over the past two years.
EBay joins forces with Goodwill
EBay has partnered with Goodwill for a pilot programme in the US that enables users to sell their used clothing and accessories on eBay, while doing some good.
The Sell it Forward programme is being tested with the San Francisco, San Mateo and Marin branches of Goodwill, as they are already respected and experienced sellers on eBay, and because the initiative fits in with eBay’s business goals, says spokesman Ryan Moore.
Local residents in the three California counties can sign up for the programme online and will receive prepaid envelopes to ship their used clothing, shoes and handbags to Goodwill. The organisation will then decide which items it believes are most likely to sell on eBay for more than $10 within a 14-day period. For those items that sell, users will receive half of the proceeds via PayPal, while the remaining half will help Goodwill fund its operations and the Sell it Forward programme. The items that do not sell will be donated to Goodwill.
“The Sell it Forward programme [offers] the potential for people to feel good about getting rid of nicer items in their closet that they don’t wear – but have a hard time parting with – to help Goodwill fund their programmes,” says Moore.
Plans to expand the programme to other regions will depend on results from the pilot and customer input.
Big brands back climate declaration
Thirty-three household name brands including Nike, Levi Strauss, Ikea, Patagonia, L’Oréal, Starbucks and Adidas have signed the Climate Declaration, urging the US government to take action on climate change. Combined, the signatories’ revenue is upwards of $450bn and the companies provide roughly 475,000 US jobs.
The declaration calls on the US Congress to enact policies that promote clean energy, boost energy efficiency, curb carbon emissions, and encourage American companies to develop technologies that can generate US jobs and incite international interest (and thus capital).
“Businesses understand that planning for a successful future takes investment today,” says Anna Walker, director of government affairs and public policy at Levi Strauss. “One of the most important things Congress can do to grow the economy and protect our planet is to pass smart climate change legislation this year. Our workforce, supply chain and consumers are counting on us to lead the way.”
The declaration is part of an ongoing campaign led by environmental coalition Ceres, which unites investors, companies and public interest groups in support of sustainable business practices, as well as its business for innovative climate and energy policy (Bicep) coalition. The group also encourages non-member businesses and individuals to take action and sign the declaration.
“The cost of inaction is too high,” says Anne Kelly, director of Bicep. “Policymakers should see climate change policy for what it is: an economic opportunity.”
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