Coordination Committee Endorses Promotions

Geneva, March 22, 1999
Press Releases PR/1999/159

The WIPO Coordination Committee, meeting on 18 and 19 March 1999, endorsed a decision by the Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Dr. Kamil Idris, to appoint two new Assistant Directors General. The Committee agreed to the appointment of Mr. Francis Gurry, a national of Australia, and Mr. Geoffrey Yu, from Singapore, to these key posts.

Mr. Gurry is Legal Counsel at WIPO and Mr. Yu is the Director of the Office of Global Communications and Public Diplomacy. In presenting their nominations to the Committee, the Director General said that both candidates had made valuable contributions to the Organization and their executive capacities were widely recognized. The Organization now has three Assistant Directors General.

The Committee also endorsed proposals by Dr. Idris for five promotions to the level of Director (D1). The promotions include two women, bringing the number of women Directors at WIPO to six. Five women have been promoted to the level of Director since Dr. Idris took over as Director General in November 1997. This is a clear reflection of the Director General's commitment to gender balance within the Organization. The new Directors are:

Mr. Joachim Muller (Germany) as Financial Controller.
Mr. Geoffrey Onyeama (Nigeria) as Director of the Africa Bureau.
Ms. Dolores Jiménez-Hernández (Mexico) as Director at the Office of Strategic Planning and Policy Development.
Mr. Vladimir Yossifov (Bulgaria) as Director of the Division for Infrastructure Services and Innovation Promotion.
Ms. Wang Binying (China) as Director at the Office of Strategic Planning and Policy Development.

For further information, please contact the Media Relations and Public Affairs Section at WIPO:

Tel: (+41 22) 338 8161; (+41 22) 338 95 47
Fax: (+41 22) 338 88 10
E-mail: publicinf@wipo.int