Copyright: WIPO. Photo: Emmanuel Berrod
Chairperson,
Firstly, ARIPO expresses its deepest appreciation to the World Intellectual Property Organization – WIPO , represented by Director General Mr. Daren Tang, for the continuous collaboration and generous support extended to our Organization and its Member States.
This year, ARIPO and WIPO joined forces in several initiatives, including the Regional Meeting on Technology and Innovation Support Center (TISC) Network, the joint celebration of the World Intellectual Property Day, and others.
WIPO continues to support the organization of the Heads of IP Offices Conference (HIPOC) for ARIPO Member States. This platform allows Heads of IP Offices to reflect on their role in an ever-changing world where an IP Office must do more than register IP titles.
I further appreciate WIPO for having invited ARIPO to the High-Level Roundtable on IP for Sustainable Development, which was organized in the framework of the Boao Forum for Asia in China earlier this year. The forum offered ARIPO an opportunity to address a large business community and raise awareness about our activities and contribution to sustainable development through IP protection and promotion.
In Copyright, WIPO continues to support ARIPO and its Member States’ initiatives. Of particular note, I would like to mention the 2nd African Publishers Conference held in June and the 5th Annual Symposium on Copyright and Related Rights slated to take place in November this year. In the margins of these Assemblies, we will formalize our cooperation on Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Mechanisms for Intellectual Property (IP) and Technology Disputes by signing a Memorandum of Understanding with WIPO.
Chairperson,
These are just a few of the impactful initiatives, and we greatly value this privilege. In conclusion, I would like to congratulate WIPO once again for successfully holding the Diplomatic Conference on Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge. I have no doubt that the upcoming Conference on Design Law Treaty will equally be a success.
Finally, ARIPO sincerely thanks WIPO and wishes all Member States fruitful deliberations during these Assemblies.
Thank you for your attention!