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PR/2013/730Geneva/Dar es Salaam, March 12, 2013

African Ministers Discuss Innovation and IP at WIPO Conference

Some twenty African ministers, senior policy makers and enterpreneurs joined President

Jakaya Kikwete of the United Republic of Tanzania and WIPO Director General Francis

Gurry at the opening ofa two-day conference in Dar es Salaam to discuss the role ofintellectual property (IP) in stimulating innovation and development. The conference,organized by WIPO and the Japan Patent Office in cooperation with the Government of the

United Republic of Tanzania, is also addressing the importance of innovation in dealing withsome of todays most pressing global challenges, such as public health, food security and

climate change.

Speaking at the opening of the Conference, Tanzanian President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwetesaid proper use of intellectual property can contribute to economic development and the

eradication of poverty in African countries. He said IP policies should be integrated withdevelopment policies. The President appealed to development partners to explore the

possibilities of increasing support to African countries in IP issues. He stressed IP issuesshould be regarded as development issues. They should not be dealt with in isolation.

Africa has a great tradition of innovation and creativity, Mr. Gurry said in opening theAfrican Conference on the Strategic Importance of Intellectual Property (IP) Policies to Foster

Innovation, Value Creation and Competitiveness. And innovation is a central driver ofeconomic growth, development and better jobs. It is the key for firms to compete successfully

in the global marketplace.

Mr. Gurry added that intellectual property is an indispensable mechanism for translating

knowledge into commercial assets IP rights create a secure environment for investment ininnovation and provide a legal framework for trading in intellectual assets. He noted thatinvestment in knowledge creation, and the maintenance of a robust and balanced IP system,

should feature prominently in any strategy to ensure sustainable economic growth, andpledged the Organizations commitment in assisting countries to develop national innovation

strategies.

Mr. Toshihiro Kose, Director General, Trademark, Design and Administrative AffairsDepartment, Japan Patent Office, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, said Japan is

fully committed to supporting the development of Africas IP systems through its funds-in-trust for Africa and LDCs program that is managed by WIPO. Mr. Kose stressed that

effective IP systems stimulate innovation. He pointed out that this conference is the largestorganized this fiscal year through its funds-in-trust program, adding, I hope it will be a

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successful occasion to foster a better environment for accelerating protection and utilizationof IP in Africa.

The conference brings together ministers responsible for IP related matters, ministers forscience and technology, heads of IP offices, as well as representatives of research and

development (R&D) institutions and innovation centers, entrepreneurs from small andmedium sized enterprises (SMEs), major industrial companies operating in Africa, regional

economic communities and regional financial institutions to discuss a wide-ranging agendaon how the continent can best capitalize on IP for promoting innovation.

The main topics that will be covered during the conference are:

Innovation policies and strategies;

Use of existing knowledge and information to promote innovation and technologytransfer (including patent databases, technology and innovation support center(TISC), Patentscope, WIPO Re:Search, etc), along with appropriate innovation

research training, tools and techniques, to find solutions to problems to todays mostpressing policy challenges;

Use of the IP system to promote and capture innovation in Africa and identify thecommon elements of an effective innovation policy and the IP elements that shouldbe integrated into such a policy.

Ministers and senior officials taking part in the conference will remain in Dar es Salaam toparticipate in a meeting jointly organized by WIPO and the United Nations Economic andSocial Council (ECOSOC) on March 14, 2013. ECOSOCs Annual Ministerial Review(AMR): Regional Preparatory Meeting for Africa will help determine Africas contribution tothe annual Ministerial ECOSOC meeting which will take place in July 2013 in Geneva. Themeeting will address the role of science, technology and innovation in achieving thedevelopment goals of the Africa.

About WIPO

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is the leading global forum for thepromotion of intellectual property as a force for innovation and creativity to achieve positive

change.

A specialized agency of the United Nations, WIPO assists its 185 member states indeveloping a balanced international IP legal framework to meet societys evolving needs. It

provides business services for obtaining IP rights in multiple countries and resolving

disputes. It delivers capacity-building programs to help developing countries benefit fromusing IP. And it provides free access to unique knowledge banks of IP information.

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