WIPO Policy Advisory Commission

In March 1998, Dr. Kamil Idris, Director General of WIPO, presented his first biennial program and budget to the member states of WIPO. The program included a novel proposal: the establishment of a Commission of eminent international experts drawn from a broad range of fields, including politics, diplomacy and administration, which have bearing on intellectual property cooperation. Its mandate would be to "enhance the Secretariat's capacity to monitor and respond in a timely, informed and effective manner to international and regional developments in intellectual property, in information technology, and in other fields bearing on WIPO's operations and its policy environment."

Among the many critical intellectual property issues currently facing the international community are those of demystifying intellectual property for the general public, facilitating the terms of transfer of technology to developing countries, enhancing transfer of technology with regard to the conservation of biodiversity and the environment, examining the legal and technical issues surrounding biotechnology and the patenting of genes, providing a legal infrastructure to allow electronic commerce to realize its full potential, exploring the protection of indigenous cultures, considering the viability of an "international patent", and ensuring the continuing and widespread availability of pharmaceuticals.

It was intended from the start that the Commission's deliberations on these and other matters would be purely advisory, with policy decisions and direction remaining solely in the hands of the Organization's member states.

Fourth session, November 2003

The Policy Advisory Commission (PAC) met for a one-day meeting in Sinaia, Romania in November. The meeting was hosted by President Ion Iliescu of Romania, and chaired by President Guido de Marco of Malta. Twenty PAC members attended, including two heads of State and four former heads of State or Government.

There were two substantive topics on the agenda:

1. Managing Cultural Assets (introduced by Mr. Bruce Lehman); and

2. Intellectual Property Policies and the Japanese Economy (introduced by Mr. Hisamitsu Arai).

In-depth discussions were held on both topics, with members noting the vast economic importance of intellectual property to the international economy and stressing the consequent need for appropriate legislative and institutional structures to realize its full potential. Note was taken of the relevance of the protection of indigenous cultural industries in developing countries, some of which were said to be suffering losses, both culturally and economically, from the lack of fully-implemented protection systems. Japan was praised for leading the way with its intention to create a truly IP-based economy. Piracy and counterfeiting were targeted as increasingly destructive scourges, accounting by one estimate for up to six per cent of world trade. Members also made clear their concern that the vast wealth, from intellectual property and elsewhere, now generated internationally still existed side by side with great poverty in many parts of the world. They stressed the need for all policy-making processes to take this into account in the formulation of balanced and equitable steps forward, and again mention was made, as at past meetings, of the need to move towards further international harmonization of systems, particularly patent systems. The Director General, taking these aspects of the discussion into account, proposed that in its future work the Commission consider in depth with reference to intellectual property issues, the straightforward yet challenging question "what makes a developing country develop?" The Chairman concluded that the commonly articulated message of the fourth session of the Commission was, in essence: "let us move forward, but not leaving others by the roadside."

Third session, October 2001

Prior to the third session, the Task Force of the Policy Advisory Commission met in New York in May. The meeting, chaired by Ambassador Sergio Marchi of Canada, heard presentations on patent issues by Mr. Hisamitsu Arai, and on Traditional Knowledge by Mr. Henry Olsson.

The third plenary of the PAC, which took place on October 11, gave priority to these issues, and heard two substantial presentations developed from the work done in the Task Force: "Agenda for Development of the International Patent System" was introduced with a presentation by Mr. Yo Takagi, Director, Office of Strategic Planning and Policy Development, and Mr. Patrick Smith, former Director General, Australian Industrial Property Organization. "Issues Concerning Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore" was introduced by Mr. Francis Gurry, Assistant Director General. The subsequent discussions in the plenary were chaired by President Guido de Marco of the Republic of Malta.

All members agreed that the international patent system faced significant new challenges, and gave explicit and unanimous support to the Director General's Patent Agenda, designed to address some of those challenges by launching worldwide consultations to develop the international patent system so that it deals with the increasing demands of global users, becomes more user-friendly and accessible and provides a more equitable balance between the rights of inventors and the general public. Members agreed that any reform of the international patent system hinged on having the requisite political will. In a statement at the end of their meeting, the PAC expressed support for WIPO's efforts "to create political momentum worldwide so as to achieve the expected objectives of the Patent Agenda." Members also emphasized the importance of Traditional Knowledge and related areas in the global picture of intellectual property issues, and asserted that such topics should be given the consideration they deserved in international fora such as WIPO. On both subjects, PAC members recognized WIPO's critical role, the strength of its contribution, its unique competence and the need for continuity of leadership in furthering these objectives.

Members at the third plenary included three incumbent Presidents (President de Marco, President Stoyanov of Bulgaria and President Iliescu of Romania), two former Presidents, a former Secretary-General of the United Nations and several current or former Ministers. Opening the day-long meeting, Dr. Idris welcomed these and other high-level members saying that their presence was "a clear demonstration of the growing importance of intellectual property for economic growth, economic development and wealth creation."

 

Second session, June 2000

The second plenary meeting of the Commission, which was joined by President Petar Stoyanov of Bulgaria, took place in June 2000. The Task Force had circulated its work on the Declaration to members beforehand, and after intensive discussion an agreed text was arrived at. Formal adoption took place on June 26, 2000, in time for presentation of the work to the Assemblies of Member States of WIPO at their September 2000 session.

Also at the June meeting of the Commission, a debate took place on the growing opposition by some sectors of civil society to globalization and to a number of international institutions. The Commission concluded that as far as intellectual property issues were concerned, the potential problem lay not with intellectual property protection but with intellectual property perception, and reaffirmed its conviction that WIPO should prioritize its demystification program.

The Commission also  examined the work being done on the WIPO Patent Law Treaty, which was successfully adopted later in the same year; at the close of the meeting it developed a recommendation that WIPO should set up a panel to examine issues relating to the question of the so-called Global Patent, and expressed its wish to move on to the important areas of traditional knowledge, genetic resources and biotechnology in future meetings.

First session, April 1999

The Commission met for the first time in April 1999. Members attending the first meeting included Prince El-Hassan Bin Talal of Jordan, who chaired the meeting, Mr. Julius Nyerere, former President of Tanzania, and Mr. Fidel Ramos, former President of the Philippines. At this meeting, the Commission heard four presentations from members, and discussed in depth the phenomenon of globalization, noting its impact on the world economy and how WIPO's work in the intellectual property field would have to develop accordingly. It was emphasized, inter alia, that intellectual property issues should be depoliticised as far as possible, so as to avoid the North-South divisiveness that had persisted in the past. Members looked at the importance of integrating all parties into the debate, and at new means of releasing the creative potential of all peoples. The Commission also particularly commended the Director General's initiative to make every effort to demystify intellectual property issues to the general public, and proposed to contribute to this effort in two specific ways: first, through the elaboration of what would become the World Intellectual Property Declaration, a concise statement containing definitions of intellectual property and intellectual property rights, explanations of their value to humanity, and a basic description of the type of work WIPO and other institutions would have to do to bring the technical framework for intellectual property protection into the twenty-first century. And, second, through the initiation of a series of expert studies demonstrating the clear link between wealth creation and intellectual property protection. A member, Mr. Hisamitsu Arai, undertook to produce the first study, which would examine the Japanese experience. A small Task Force of Members was set up to work on the Declaration, and met twice in July 1999 and February 2000 to this end. Meanwhile, Mr. Arai worked on the study "Intellectual Property Policies for the Twenty-First Century: The Japanese Experience in Wealth Creation." This study was completed and published by WIPO in December 1999.