WIPO signs cooperation agreement with community of Portuguese-speaking countries

Geneva, April 17, 2002
Press Releases PR/2002/308

The Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Dr. Kamil Idris, signed an agreement on April 17, 2002, with the Executive Secretary of the Community of Portuguese-speaking countries (CPLP), Ambassador Mrs. Dulce Maria Pereira, aimed at reinforcing cooperation between the two organizations. The agreement was signed at WIPO headquarters in Geneva in the presence of ambassadors from several Portuguese-speaking countries, namely Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Mozambique and Portugal.

The agreement reflects the importance that WIPO attaches to language and cultural diversity. It stipulates that WIPO's cooperation for development activities with Portuguese speaking countries will be undertaken in Portuguese. Portuguese is spoken by 176 million people in eight countries spread over four continents (Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, East Timor, Guinea Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal, and Sao Tome and Principe).

Cultural identity is a strong unifying element among the CPLP member states. Talks on the relevance of the intellectual property system to cultural heritage and traditional knowledge are currently taking place under the auspices of WIPO. In addition, a recent WIPO study in several South American countries revealed the economic importance of the cultural industries. In Brazil alone, the culture industries accounted for 6.7% of gross domestic product, representing some 54 billion US dollars, and employed some one million people. Copyright is at the heart of these cultural industries. Under the agreement, WIPO commits to help this group of countries to better harvest their creativity for economic, social and cultural development and wealth creation. WIPO will also assist these countries in establishing collective copyright management societies.

CPLP and WIPO will also collaborate on a project aimed at providing WIPO's distance learning program in Portuguese. The program is currently available in Chinese, English, French and Spanish. Arabic, Portuguese, and Russian are expected later this year.

African Portuguese speaking countries will benefit from the implementation of a global digital information network by the end of this year. Known as "WIPONET", this network ensures Internet access, and enables the integration of information resources, processes and intellectual property systems worldwide. WIPONET will eventually connect all of the world's intellectual property offices and facilitate the transfer of technology to developing countries as well as enhance access to intellectual property services and resources.

The following ambassadors were also present at the meeting: Mr. João Filipe Martins (Angola), Mr. Luiz Felipe de Seixas Corrêa (Brazil), Mr. Alexandre de Conceição Zandamela (Mozambique), and Mr. Alvaro de Mendonça e Moura (Portugal). As well as the Chargé d'affaires of Cape Verde, Mr. António Pedro Alves Lopes and Ms. Annick Melson, CPLP Counsellor to the UN.

For more information please contact the Media Relations and Public Affairs Section at +4122-3388161 or +4122-3389547 or publicinf@wipo.int.