At the World Trade Organization (WTO), India is advocating for developed nations to take concrete steps to boost technology transfer to developing countries. This push seeks to address global inequalities and foster economic growth in less developed nations by ensuring they have a fair stake in global trade.

India is emphasizing the need to overcome barriers such as export controls and intellectual property rules that impede the flow of advanced technologies. The country is urging developed members of the WTO to incentivize the transfer of technology to developing and least-developed countries, highlighting that technology transfer can enable development.

India has been actively pushing for a stronger connection between technology transfer and development issues at the WTO. This is particularly important in the context of global challenges such as climate change and health crises. For instance, India proposed a roadmap to facilitate the transfer of environmentally sound technologies to address climate change. This roadmap includes the establishment of a database for these technologies and a platform to streamline licensing practices, enabling developing countries to utilize flexibilities within the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement.

The TRIPS Agreement includes provisions, such as Article 66.2, that obligate developed countries to provide incentives for technology transfer to least-developed countries. However, the implementation of these provisions has been imperfect, raising concerns among developing countries. India has also emphasized Articles 7 and 8.2 of the TRIPS Agreement, which promote technology transfer and prevent the abuse of intellectual property rights that could restrain trade.

India views technology transfer as crucial for achieving the WTO's objectives of raising living standards, ensuring full employment, and promoting sustainable development. To this end, India is advocating for disciplines to ensure technology transfer occurs at fair and reasonable costs to developing countries. This includes addressing the challenges faced by developing countries in accessing technologies due to prohibitive costs and economies of scale.

By advocating for enhanced technology transfer, India aims to bridge the gap between developed and developing nations, fostering a more equitable and prosperous global trading system.