Helping Member States Prepare for Accession to the Geneva Act

The benefits of accession, how the system works, the view from a recent signatory and available assistance through WIPO were just some of the topics covered in a regional webinar organized by the WIPO Singapore Office on the Geneva Act of the Lisbon Agreement.

The Lisbon Agreement, and its latest revision, the Geneva Act of 2015, provide for the international protection of appellations of origin and geographical indications through a single procedure with WIPO. Appellations of origin and geographical indications are distinctive product designations which require a qualitative link between the product to which they refer and its place of origin.

The webinar saw 58 participants from 12 member states across the Asia and Pacific region. Many were examination staff of IP offices while others had responsibility for policy and legal matters. Interestingly from a gender diversity perspective, of the 58 participants, 30 identified as female.

One of the highlights of the session was the presentation delivered by Mr. Lao Reasey, Deputy Director, Department of Intellectual Property, Ministry of Commerce, Cambodia. The Geneva Act came into force in Cambodia in February 2020. Mr. Reasey talked about Cambodia’s motivation to join the treaty, how this has impacted on their business community and challenges they faced when joining the Geneva Act of the Lisbon Agreement.

A number of Member States expressed an interest in WIPO providing seminars and workshops for users and stakeholders, as well as legislative assistance.