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  Africa participate as providers in the WIPO Re:Search Consortium, a voluntary mechanism for making IPR and know-how available on mutually-agreed terms and conditions to the global health research community to find cures or treatments for neglected tropical diseases, malaria, and tuberculosis. Other countries participate as supporters. These arrangements have been used successfully to enhance access to medicines.

Another best practice is the active participation of government officials in technical assistance and capacity building. As further explained in Annex 2, the United States encourages foreign governments to make training opportunities available to their officials and actively engages with trading partners in capacity building efforts both in the United States and abroad. 

Multilateral and Plurilateral Initiatives

The United States works to promote adequate and effective IPR protection and enforcement through the following mechanisms:

 Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP): Through the TPP, the United States is seeking to advance multifaceted U.S. trade and investment interests in the Asia-Pacific region. The TPP is an ambitious, 21st-century regional trade negotiation involving Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam, and the United States. The TPP negotiations are being undertaken by this group of countries with the goal of creating a platform for integration of trade and investment frameworks across the Asia-Pacific region, and for addressing emerging IPR issues in the 21st century, including with respect to strong and balanced standards for the protection and enforcement of IPR.

Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (T-TIP): In 2013, the USTR notified the U.S. Congress of the President's intent to enter into negotiations for a comprehensive trade and investment agreement with the European Union (EU). Since that notification, the United States and the EU have held several rounds of negotiations, most recently in April 2015. The United States and the EU provide among the highest levels of IPR protection and enforcement in the world. In the T-TIP, the United States is pursuing a targeted approach on IPR that will reflect the shared U.S.-EU objective of high-level IPR protection and enforcement, and sustained and enhanced joint leadership on IPR issues. The United States will seek new opportunities to advance and defend the interests of U.S. creators, innovators, businesses, farmers, ranchers, and workers with respect to strong protection and effective enforcement of IPR, including the ability to compete in foreign markets.  9