WIPO Names Jury for International Architectural Competition

Geneva, June 4, 1999
Press Releases PR/1999/174

A number of eminent architects from different parts of the world will sit on the 18-member multinational jury that the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) has appointed to monitor and select the winners of the international architectural competition to extend its premises. The jury (list attached), which also includes senior government officials and legal experts, will hold its first meeting in Geneva on June 7, 1999, to establish the conditions of entry that must be met by candidates before their proposals can be formally considered within the framework of the competition.

The jury, made up of fifteen permanent members and three substitutes and supported by a team of technical experts, is responsible for ensuring that the selection process is undertaken in an objective and transparent manner according to pre-defined standards. The jury will also examine each proposal to select the competition winners. The jury will be looking for the most suitable architectural, environmentally-friendly, and operationally efficient projects. They will also decide on the awards which will be granted to each of the prize winners.

WIPO is very pleased with the positive response it has received to the initial registration procedure. Some 800 architectural practices from 62 countries across the globe have expressed written interest in the international competition since its launch in November 1998. These firms will now undergo a "pre-qualification procedure" involving the submission of professional credentials and architectural profiles. WIPO will send out information about this next phase to all registrants on June 18, 1999. Entrants must respond to the questions set out by the jury by July 16, 1999.

The competition was launched following a decision by WIPO member states in June 1998, to authorize the acquisition of additional land adjacent to the existing headquarters' building for expansion of its administrative headquarters in Geneva.

The growing importance of intellectual property issues and the consequent expansion of WIPO's activities has created a pressing practical need for additional premises. Endorsement by members states of the extension project, for which some 82.5 million Swiss francs have been ear-marked, is a reflection of their renewed confidence in the future development of the Organization and its pivotal role in promoting the protection of intellectual property rights throughout the world.

The competition itself is composed of three independent elements. Firstly, the construction of an office building providing at least 500 workplaces, several meeting rooms, an underground car park for about 300 vehicles, a cafeteria to seat 300 people, service areas and a link to the main building. Secondly, a conference room, offering about 600 seats for delegates and equipped with modern six-language interpretation facilities and appropriate computer and audiovisual equipment, to be located in immediate proximity to the existing WIPO conference and meeting facilities. Thirdly, enlargement and restructuring of the lower floors of the main WIPO building to provide parking facilities for delegates and visitors.

A list of candidates satisfying the terms of the pre-qualification procedure will be issued on September 17, 1999. Proposals submitted by successful entrants will be scrutinized by the jury which will announce the winners of the competition in March 2000.

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