A/HRC/12/WG.2/TF/2 page 18 obligations of article 12.1 of the International Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. 74. Moreover, the task force considers that the Global Strategy and Plan of Action should balance and coordinate the objectives of public health and the interests of trade and that the right to health should take precedence over commercial interests. In this regard, it reiterates its support, first expressed at its second session (E/CN.4/2005/WG.18/TF/3, para. 67), for general comment 17, adopted by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in 2001, and specifically the principle that States Parties should ensure that their legal or other regimes protecting intellectual property do not impede their ability to comply with their core obligations under the rights to food, health, and education. The task force notes with concern that the Global Strategy does not caution against the adoption of TRIPS-plus protection in bilateral trade agreements, and makes no other specific reference to the impact of bilateral or regional trade agreements on access to medicines. 75. Regarding the principle of participation, the task force welcomes the Global Strategy and Plan of Action provisions for web-based hearings, regional and inter-country consultations and the direct participation of non-governmental organizations and experts, as well as funding to enable the attendance of the least developed countries. 76. Regarding the principle of accountability, the task force welcomes as consistent with the right to development criteria the monitoring, evaluation and reporting systems of actions of Governments, as the primary duty-holders, and of industry, although some improvements could be made in the indicators used. 6. Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria 77. Although the right to development concept has not been explicitly used, the strategy of the Special Programme is rights-based in that its core features is the empowerment of developing country efforts through partnership and capacity-building. The task force supports further efforts to design and implement relevant programmes in ways that reflect the principles of the right to development and initiatives that explicitly use a human right to health framework. 78. The transparency and accountability of the Special Programme could be strengthened, particularly in the area of contractual agreements with pharmaceutical companies regarding pricing and access to medicines, which are currently not disclosed, broadening the scope of independent reviews for mutual accountability in areas such as the pricing of products developed by private partners. 79. The task force notes that the impact of the Special Programme on innovation with regard to infectious diseases – and thus its contribution to target E of Millennium Development Goal 8 – has been limited owing to the fact that it has been underfunded in relation to the magnitude of the challenge at hand. At the same time, the governance structures of the newer private foundations and non governmental organizations, which have access to far greater resources, do not provide for accountability to the public at large. It is of concern that the global efforts for