WIPO Director General Welcomes Spain’s Contribution to Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Peoples as well as Local Communities

April 24, 2024

WIPO Director General Daren Tang welcomes a contribution of EUR 20,000 by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) to the WIPO Voluntary Fund, which supports the participation of the Indigenous Peoples as well as local communities in international negotiations hosted at WIPO.

The contribution will go toward increasing the engagement of Indigenous Peoples as well as local communities in the WIPO Diplomatic Conference on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge. WIPO will host the Diplomatic Conference at its Geneva headquarters from May 13 to 24, 2024. The Diplomatic Conference represents the final stage of negotiations before the adoption of an international legal instrument.

This voluntary contribution represents the first contribution to this fund made by Spain, as part of its commitment to the rights of Indigenous Peoples, carried out through the Indigenous Program of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID).

On the WIPO Voluntary Fund

WIPO Member States established the Voluntary Fund for Accredited Indigenous and Local Communities in 2005, with the aim to help bring the perspective of Indigenous Peoples as well as local communities to the Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (IGC). Since its inception, the Voluntary Fund has supported 165 applications of representatives of Indigenous Peoples as well as local communities, allowing them to attend sessions of the IGC in person and contribute to the discussions.