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Patently Obvious
Protection of intellectual property - works of the mind - is the lifeblood of today's new knowledge economy. But while the benefits to the multinational pharmaceutical or telecommunication giants are plain, what relevance do international patent regulations have for developing countries?
Anil Gupta |
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Anil Gupta is a professor at the Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad in the state of Gujarat. His mission is recognition and reward for creative people. "My commitment is to the creative people - people who are doing something new without any outside help. The skills and knowledge that they have is not prized by the market properly. Knowledge is a resource - if their knowledge was prized property they wouldn't be poor."
In the new knowledge economy, the World Trade Organisation in Geneva enforces the law on intellectual property. But long before the World Trade Organisation was set up, Anil Gupta went to the villages in search of grassroots innovators. Every six months, Anil goes on a pilgrimage, walking from village to village in search of inventions, knowledge and innovation - "the local genius which is there in the villages".
Khimjibhai is a retired schoolteacher who's been inventing devices for nearly 40 years: he shows off a portable seat for students who have to wait around, a sort of pressure cooker which saves fuel, a device for shifting the weight women carry on the heads onto their shoulders, and a pesticide sprayer which is more efficient. The sprayer is his only invention which has been patented - the others, he's quite happy for people to copy.
Patola silk has been woven in Patan for 800 years, and Anil believes it should have geographical protection, like Champagne, which can only come from the Champagne District of France. The Patan Patola silk style is being cheaply imitated elsewhere and unless copyright protection can be applied, to encourage the next generation to continue, the future of the genuine traditional article looks bleak.
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Karimbhai |
Traditional healers are also a precious resource whose knowledge should be protected. Karimbhai practises herbal medicine from his home. He believes he has discovered a cure for diabetes. His remedy is currently being scientifically tested to see if it can be patented. He also knows the antidotes to poisonous pythons, and knows a cure for the mentally ill. "The knowledge is traditional, my father also had this knowledge - I got my training from him and now my children are also gaining knowledge from me so when they grow up they will also benefit." Ten years ago he lived in a tiny hut and charged nothing for treating patients. But now a burgeoning clientele and the need to encourage his sons means Karimbhai accepts payment from those who can afford to pay. Traditional knowledge has become a good way of earning a good living and that fact has interested Karimbhai's sons.
Karimbhai worked with Anil to establish a "Knowledge Forest", a nature reserve to preserve medicinal plants and local biodiversity. Anil is amazed at how much knowledge lies hidden. "We've come across children who, by the age of 12, have been able to identify the main uses for as many as 300 plants." His SRISTI organisation holds biodiversity contests to encourage the young to show off their knowledge of plants. These contests mean that having lots of knowledge about plant species is seen by everybody else as important - not least because you get lots of prizes.
Says Anil: "They have tremendous skill - a skill that the whole world needs! You know it's extremely important to remember that the regions that are very rich in biodiversity are extremely poor economically - and one reason why they are poor is because the market is not able to prize the knowledge in which they are rich."
Some farmers have identified high-yielding varieties of economically important crops, like Thakershibhai, who has raised a high-yielding groundnut. "The nuts of this variety contain more oil and this benefits the millers and the farmers," he says. "So we get better prices and the size of the nuts is bigger. Yes, I should get the return from my invention. I should get that protection. If the cricket team wins, the government gives them many prizes. So why not me?"
In drought-prone Sauashtra, Mansukhbhai saw a way of replacing bullocks with an Enfield motorcycle and a pair of rear wheels to draw a tool bar that can plough, weed or sow seeds. Mansukhbhai doesn't yet worry about patent protection. He can only build 50 machines a year. He says he's glad farmers are benefiting but he does worry his market will be threatened in the future.
Tractor
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Another inventor has developed a mini-tractor which is now being manufactured. Bhanjibhai, his son and his nephews first developed a three-wheel tractor and there followed a whole series of prototypes, many of which were sold to farmers in the village. "This tractor is more convenient for small farmers. Only big farmers can afford big tractors - smaller farmers have smaller fields - so this kind of a small tractor would be within their reach. This tractor is of ten-horse power which the farmers prefer," says Bhanjibhai. Anil Gupta sees a great future for this tractor. "My reason for hope is also the fact that this innovation has been designed by a grass roots person, a farmer who knows the problems that arise in the field."
Small inventors in developing countries are not really catered for by international patent regulations. Any country wanting to benefit from the World Trade Organisation has to sign up to TRIPS - the Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights Agreement. The TRIPS agreement was written by the highly industrialised nations, trying to attach value to what is now the most important part of the world trading system: the knowledge economy. The WTO claims that TRIPS does "provide some means by which local communities, indigenous peoples can protect their traditional knowledge".
But Anil Gupta realises there is a long way to go, because the scientific establishment will have to "develop humility to join hands with these people" - not a very likely prospect. But he will continue to work for the recognition of his village geniuses. "As someone who believes very strongly in the knowledge of the people and creative potential of the grassroots, I'll try every option possible - for me there's no unreachable. So long as my values are intact, I don't care."
TRANSCRIPT
Read the full transcript of Patently Obvious
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