The latest Marrakesh Monitoring Report sets out how far countries are using the opportunity provided by the Marrakesh Treaty to remove unnecessary copyright barriers to access to information for people with print disabilities.

When the Marrakesh Treaty was agreed in Morocco in 2013, it marked a significant moment in the history of international copyright law, as the first treaty purely focused on strengthening the rights of users, and correcting the dysfunction that over-broad copyright can create.

It was arguably more significant though for people with print disabilities, who struggled to enjoy anywhere near the same level of access to information as others, with only a small share of books and other materials produced in accessible formats.

The problem created by copyright was that it leaves the decision about whether it is possible to make accessible format copies to rightholders who may have neither the ability or the commercial motivation to do so. While there is progress in accessible publishing, it remains too slow.

The solution provided by the Marrakesh Treaty was to make it clear that people with print disabilities – as well as the individuals and institutions that support them, including libraries, can both make and share accessible format copies, also across borders. This is a significant step in particular for developing countries, who gain access to materials from elsewhere.

Since then, 112 countries have ratified or acceded to the Treaty, opening up new possibilities for access and inclusion.

However, the Treaty can be implemented in different ways, and there are notably options to place restrictions on access, for example by obliging payments or forcing libraries and others to check if books are commerically available first. Both take resources away from serving users.

There are also easier and harder ways for libraries to be recognised as ‘authorised entities’  under the Treaty (a priori, there is no need for registration, or difficult reporting), while more positively, it is possible to allow people with other disabilities (such as deafness) to benefit.

The Marrakesh Monitoring Report offers a way of checking on which countries are implementing the Treaty in the most open way possible, and which ones are (still) placing limitations.

Access the report on our repository.

Keep an eye on our website for subsequent reporting and analysis of the results!