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WIPO Director General meets President ofPortugal

Geneva, February 6, 2001
Press Updates UPD/2001/122

The role and importance of intellectual property as a strategic policy instrument to promote economic development and wealth creation was at the heart of talks between President Jorge Sampaio of Portugal and Dr. Kamil Idris, Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in Lisbon on February 1, 2001. The President and Dr. Idris exchanged views on the growing importance of intellectual property as a tool for development in today's knowledge-driven economy. The President expressed particular interest in WIPO's work in traditional knowledge, an area in which Portugal has a rich heritage, and in the establishment of the Intergovernmental Committee on Traditional Knowledge, Genetic Resources and Folklore which is to hold its first meeting at WIPO in Geneva from April 30 to May 3, 2001.

During his visit to Lisbon from January 31 to February 1, 2001, Dr. Idris also met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Jaime José Matos da Gama, the Minister of Economy, Mr. Mário Cristina de Sousa, the Secretary of State for Cultural Affairs, Mr. João do Nascimento Baptista and the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Mr. Luís Filipe Marques Amado. Talks focused on ways to improve cooperation with WIPO to provide technical assistance to Portuguese-speaking developing countries. The Portuguese government also expressed its appreciation of a decision by WIPO member states to use Portuguese more widely in the work of the Organization.

The Director General expressed his gratitude to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Jaime José Matos da Gama, for being awarded on February 1, 2001 the Grand Cross of the Infante D. Henrique. The award established in 1960 to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the death of the navigator, D. Henrique, is one of the highest honors to be bestowed by the Portuguese Government.

Dr. Idris also addressed the opening session of the High-Level Interregional Roundtable on Intellectual Property for Least Developed Countries which brought together ministers and officials from some 48 least developed countries. The meeting was organized by WIPO in cooperation with the Government of Portugal.

Dr. Idris emphasized that the key role of intellectual property in economic activities and spoke of "new windows of opportunity" for LDCs brought about by the Internet and the expansion of electronic commerce. He underlined the importance of, and WIPO's commitment to, strengthening human and institutional development in the field of intellectual property in LDCs. The Director General stressed the importance of delivering concrete, practical solutions by "moving from rhetoric, from the academic, to the pragmatic". In referring to the role of technological development in promoting economic growth, he said "technological development and intellectual property must go hand in hand. For us these are the two faces of the same coin".

The Director General also referred to WIPO's work on the protection of traditional knowledge, genetic resources and expressions of folklore and to the newly established program to promote use of the intellectual property system by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Dr. Idris said that these areas were of "critical" importance to LDCs in ensuring that "the intellectual property system we create has direct impact on the GDP of LDCs".

Mr. Amhed Tofail, Minister of Industries, Bangladesh, Mr. Jehoash Mayanja-Nkangi, Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Uganda, together with Professor Vitor Santos, Secretary of State to the Minister for Economy, Portugal and Mr. João do Nascimento Baptista, Secretary of State for Cultural Affairs, Portugal, also delivered keynote speeches at the opening session of the Roundtable.

At the conclusion of the two-day meeting held on February 1 and 2, 2001, the ministers and senior government officials participating in the Roundtable issued a Ministerial Declaration reaffirming their commitment to "seeking opportunities to strengthen international cooperation in the field of intellectual property for development" through active participation in and support of WIPO's cooperation for development activities. The so-called Lisbon Declaration includes a decision to submit the deliberations of the Roundtable to the Third United Nations Conference on LDCs in Brussels in May 2001 and further invited the Director General to transmit the outcome of the Roundtable to that Conference.

For further information, please contact the Media Relations & Public Affairs Section at WIPO: Tel: + 41 22 338 81 61 or 95 47; Fax: + 41 22 338 88 10; E-mail: publicinf@wipo.int

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