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Enforcement Advisory Body Continues to Focus on the Benefits of Effective Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights

Geneva, May 18, 2006
Press Releases PR/2006/447

The need to heighten awareness of the negative impact of counterfeiting and piracy and to build support for global enforcement efforts was at the core of discussions at a meeting of the World Intellectual Property Organization's (WIPO) Advisory Committee on Enforcement (ACE) in Geneva from May 15-17, 2006. Among the top officials addressing the Committee were Mr. Datuk Hj. Mohd Shafie bin Hj. Apdal, Minister, Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs, Putrajaya, Malaysia, Senator Colin Derrick, Minister for Justice, St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda, Mr. Ion Codescu, Secretary of State, Ministry of Justice, Romania, and Mr. Fadi Makki, Director General/Advisor to the Prime Minister, Lebanon.

"The Advisory Committee on Enforcement has been successful in mobilizing attention about the importance of effective enforcement. We cannot underestimate the negative impact of counterfeiting and piracy, and not just in terms of the economic losses but also the threat posed to health and security," said Dr. Kamil Idris, Director General of WIPO. "I welcome the clear commitment by all member states to work together to eliminate counterfeiting and piracy," he added.

The ACE was set up by WIPO member states in 2002 as a forum for discussion of enforcement matters with a mandate of coordinating with certain organizations and the private sector to combat counterfeiting and piracy activities; public education; assistance; coordination to undertake national and regional training programs for all relevant stakeholders and the exchange of information on enforcement issues through the establishment of an Electronic Forum.

During this session, the Committee heard presentations by both member states and the private sector on national as well as global experiences in the field of IP enforcement, which provided valuable insight into the problems and solutions in different countries. It also underscored the importance of enforcement of intellectual property (IP) rights and the need for closer international cooperation.

The presentations, designed to exchange views on IP enforcement issues, dealt with, inter alia, the extent of counterfeiting and piracy activities in different countries, the advisability of an officially adopted holistic strategic approach to enforcement matters, the problems related to safety and health products in developing countries, the importance of "training trainers", the expansion of efficient public outreach programs and of involving collecting societies in the fight against piracy, the elaboration of comprehensive national guidelines for the fight against piracy, the need to give foreign investors confidence in the rule of law, and the need to ensure that institutional structures were in place before assistance was given to a country.

The Committee took note of the considerable and wide-ranging activities undertaken by WIPO in the form of expert missions, training and study visits, seminars and workshops, and other activities to promote awareness of the importance of IP enforcement, including training sessions for members of the judiciary. Some delegations informed about development cooperation activities in their countries that had a bearing on the enforcement of IP rights.

Following informal consultations, the Committee agreed that the next session of the ACE should consider an exchange of views on coordination and cooperation at the international, regional and national levels in the field of enforcement.

The meeting, which was chaired by Mr. Henry Olsson, Special Government Advisor, Ministry of Justice of Sweden, was well attended by representatives of member states including several ambassadors, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations.

For further information, please contact the Media Relations and Public Affairs Section at WIPO: Tel: (+41 22) 338 81 61 or (+41 22) 338 95 47; E-mail: publicinf@wipo.int

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