WIPO Director General Meets with Presidentof Slovakia
Geneva, December 6, 2001
Press Updates UPD/2001/151
During a visit to Slovakia on December 4 and 5, 2001, Dr. Kamil Idris, Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), stressed the role of the intellectual property system as a key tool of economic policy. The visit featured a meeting with Mr. Rudolf Schuster, President of the Slovak Republic, who shared the Director General's views on the value of the intellectual property system to countries such as Slovakia in promoting economic growth and social advancement.
Dr. Idris applauded the Slovakian authorities for their efforts to bring intellectual property legislation in line with regional and international standards and reiterated WIPO's support in enhancing the intellectual property system in Slovakia. An effective intellectual property system, he said, would enable Slovakians to harvest the fruits of their creativity, their rich folklore and musical traditions, facilitate the in-flow of foreign investment and boost economic growth. Under the terms of a memorandum of understanding signed by the Director General and the President of the Industrial Property Office of Slovakia, Mrs. Darina Kyliánová, WIPO will provide a comprehensive program of assistance to help strengthen the intellectual property system in Slovakia. This will include, legal and technical advice in industrial property and copyright matters, training programs, including distance learning modules, on-line intellectual property services, and support of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
In Slovakia, the Director General also met with Mr. Jaroslav Chlebo, State Secretary of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, and Mr. Milan Kňako, Minister of Culture. Dr. Idris spoke of a new chapter in the history of intellectual property, in which its classical tools (patents, trademarks, etc.) are being incorporated into broader economic policy to promote wealth creation. He said that the IP system provided opportunities for countries such as Slovakia to transform their innovative and creative capacities into concrete economic assets to boost the national economy and social well-being. Dr. Idris referred to a number of WIPO activities, in particular the intellectual property training programs offered by the WIPO Academy, the Organization's public awareness initiatives to create broad-based understanding of the value of intellectual property in daily life and the WIPONET project. Once completed, WIPONET will create a global information infrastructure linking the operations of the world's intellectual property offices. The Director General also outlined WIPO's activities in relation to electronic commerce, small and medium-sized enterprises and folklore.
In addition, the Director General visited University of Matej Bel in Banská Bystrica, where he was awarded an honorary doctorate. On accepting this honor, Dr. Idris urged closer cooperation between the universities in Slovakia and the WIPO Worldwide Academy as a means to promote the dissemination of knowledge on intellectual property issues and broader understanding of the value of the system and how it works.
Slovakia became a member of WIPO in 1993 and is party to 11 WIPO-administered international treaties in the field of intellectual property.
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