1. Progress on the IK
Update to PPC
10 May 2017

2. PROGRESS ON THE IK BILL 1/4
On 1 March 2017, the DST drafting team met with the Parliamentary Legal drafters and jointly responded to and addressed the comments made during the public hearings. The Bill has now been transposed into a technical working draft.
The Portfolio Committee undertook two oversight visits to Ataqua and Durban on 27 and 30 March respectively.
The purpose of the visits was to engage with the communities on the IK Bill and visit the IK instruments established by DST.
A follow up meeting with the Ataqua community was held with the DST, to address the Bio-cultural issues raised with and by the Portfolio Committee.

3. PROGRESS ON THE IK BILL 2/4
On 1 March 2017, DST attended a joint sitting between the Trade and Industry and Science and Technology Portfolio Committees.
The purpose of the meeting was to solicit further comments and inputs from the dti regarding the IK Bill.
The Commissioner from the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission made a presentation on behalf of the dti. The DST responded to the dti presentation.

4. PROGRESS ON THE IK BILL 3/4
On behalf of the JPC, the chair of the S&T Portfolio Committee wrote letters (dated 6 March 2017) to the Ministers of Science and Technology and of Trade and Industry, requesting the Departments to establish a task team to resolve the misalignments between the two pieces of legislation.
The Minister of Science and Technology responded to the letter citing her reluctance to the JPC’s request, but agreeing to the establishment to the task team.
The DG of the dti proposed extending the brief of the task team to include DEA; as the lead department on the task team, the DST did not support this proposal.

5. PROGRESS ON THE IK BILL 4/4
DST is convening the task team on for 26 May 2017 to discuss:
“Misalignment” between the IK Bill and IPLAA.
The necessity and/or validity of protecting the commercialisation of IK through the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) protection, as the patent legislation for the promotion of IK has barely been used.
The specification and functionality of the national database envisaged under section 28 (c) of IPLAA.
The process of registering derivatives from IK and how the existing IK would be protected.
The transboundary nature of IK.
The commercialisation of IK without acquiring IPRs.