WIPO Director General on official visit to Ghana
Mr Francis Gurry, Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), would be on a two-day official visit to Ghana to discuss bilateral relations between WIPO and Ghana.
A statement from the Ministry of Justice and Attorney General and copied to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) said Mr Gurry’s visit, which starts from 30th November to 1st December, would visit the Presidency and some Government Ministers and would participate in a series of events, including the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) Ministerial Council, during the two day visit.
The statement said Mr Gurry would meet with the Ministers of Justice and Attorney General, Trade and Industries, Education, Science and Technology, and Food and Agriculture, as well as the Registrar-General’s Department and the Law Faculty of the University of Ghana.
WIPO is a specialized agency of the UN dedicated to developing a balanced and accessible international Intellectual Property (IP) system, which rewards creativity, stimulates innovation and contributes to economic development while safeguarding the public interest.
WIPO has a mandate from its 184 member states to promote the protection of IP throughout the world through cooperation among states and in collaboration with other stakeholders.
WIPO’s activities fall broadly into three areas, namely, the progressive development of international IP law, IP capacity-building programs to support the efficient use of IP, particularly in developing countries, and services to industry which facilitate the process of obtaining IP rights in multiple countries and alternative dispute resolution options for private parties.
Ghana joined WIPO in June 1976 and continued to make an important and positive contribution to the on-going process of exploring how to further improve different aspects of the international IP system and to influence the future evolution of the IP landscape.
Ghana is also party to eleven other treaties administered by WIPO, including those which facilitate the international filing and registration of patents, trademarks and designs, and the WIPO Internet treaties which establish the basic standards of protection for copyright and related rights in the digital environment.
As part of Ghana’s Intellectual Property Development Plan, drafted in collaboration with WIPO, the Organization provides technical assistance to enable Ghana to develop its IP infrastructure. WIPO is also supporting the Government’s efforts to prepare a national IP strategy.
Source: GNA