WIPO Director General meets Minister of State of the Republic of Ghana

WIPO Director General, Dr. Kamil Idris met, on Thursday, 6 March 2008, with a high-level Ghanaian delegation led by H.E. Mr. Ambrose Dery, Minister of State, Ministry of Justice and Attorney General’s Department of the Republic of Ghana, to discuss the use of intellectual property (IP) as a strategically important tool for development and on ways in which WIPO could further support Ghana in promoting effective utilization of the IP system for development.

 

Dr. Idris applauded the achievements of the Ghanaian Government in promoting use of the IP system.  He underlined the important role of the IP system as a means of creating value in knowledge-based economies. Dr. Idris further emphasized the enormous potential in using the IP system strategically, in particular, within Ghana’s cultural industries sector. 

 

The Director General pledged the Organization’s continued support and welcomed the prospective conclusion of the Intellectual Property Development Plan for the Republic of Ghana, which outlines a range of activities and assistance programs designed to promote the use of IP for development in the country. WIPO’s support covers assistance in modernizing the legislative and administrative intellectual property framework, promoting awareness of the benefits of intellectual property protection, human resource development, upgrading enforcement mechanisms, and strengthening the role of intellectual property in the country’s scientific, technological and economic activities.

 

In thanking the Director General, Minister Dery spoke of his country’s commitment to the strategic use of IP, and underlined that the implementation of Ghana’s IP Development Plan would provide an important impetus in enabling Ghana to effectively harness the value of its creative and innovative resources.

 

In the course of the one-day visit, Minister Dery, accompanied by Mrs. Grace Issahaque, Principle State Attorney, and Mrs. Sylvia Adusu, Principal State Attorney, Registar General’s Department, Ministry of Justice and the Attorney General’s Department, and Mrs. Loretta Asiedu, First Secretary, Ghana Permanent Mission in Geneva met with senior WIPO officials to discuss the various assistance programs undertaken by WIPO and to finalize the IP Development Plan for Ghana.