Presidents of ASEAN IP Associations Gather at WSO for Roundtable

June 1, 2017

Representatives from 9 national and one regional IP Association in ASEAN attended a roundtable with the WIPO Singapore Office (WSO) on May 15 to discuss WIPO services, challenges facing their associations and areas for collaboration.

This was the first time the WSO had organized an event specifically targeting the leaders of this important and influential group in ASEAN. The response to the invitation was excellent with representatives from 10 of the 11 invited associations accepting the invitation.

In addition, of the 10 participating associations, eight sent their president whilst the other two were represented by the Secretary General and Secretary. This high level representation contributed to the insightful and meaningful discussions that took place over the course of the event.

Participants at the inaugural *Roundtable for Executives of National and Regional IP Associations in ASEAN (Photo: WIPO)*

The program for the Roundtable introduced participants to the work of WIPO in a broad sense before narrowing the focus to the ASEAN IP framework and eco-system. It also included specific sessions on WIPO’s global services, WIPO platforms, the Arbitration and Mediation Center, WIPO reference materials, and updates of outcomes and issues from the various WIPO fora.

Of particular value was the topic entitled ‘Tour of the region’ which gave each association the chance to share with the group the challenges their organization face, the work the association has planned for 2017 and potential areas of collaboration with WIPO. Some of the common themes were the struggle for the associations to recruit new members, and the lack of human and financial resources.

Delegates discussed a range of items at the day-long event organized by the WIPO Singapore Office (Photo: WIPO)

A feedback form was distributed to the participants with the main findings being:

100% of attendees were either very satisfied or satisfied with the roundtable;
100% of attendees left with an enhanced understanding of WIPO services such as PCT, Madrid and the Hague; and
79% were very likely to attend a future IP Association Roundtable.

Informal feedback was also very positive:

On behalf of the Malaysian IP Association I would like to express our gratitude to the WIPO team for a great Roundtable. The resource materials that were shared with us during the day will be of great benefit to the association’s members,
Mr. Chew Phye Keat, President, Malaysian Intellectual Property Association.

The Roundtable of IP Associations in ASEAN was a very good and welcome initiative from the WIPO Singapore Office as it gave our association the chance to interact with the leaders of the national associations. It also gave the participants an overview of, and insight into, the workings of WIPO and helped us understand the mandate of WIPO. Questioning was encouraged, and questioning we did! The Roundtable met our expectations and we look forward to a similar gathering next year!
Ms. Lila Quirino, President, ASEAN IP Association

The WSO will look to hold a second Roundtable in 2018 to build on the outcomes and relationships formed during this year’s inaugural meeting.