Committee Meetings
Appointment of Top Management Team
Member States in the WIPO Coordination Committee approved by consensus on June 20 the proposals put forward by WIPO Director General Kamil Idris for a new senior management team. With the exception of one Deputy Director General appointment, these posts have been filled from within the Organization, so facilitating continuity in the management structure. The appointments are effective from December 1, 2006, to November 30, 2009.
The Committee noted that all the candidates are well qualified for the proposed positions. The Director General and the Coordination Committee paid warm tributes to the outgoing Deputy Directors General, Mrs. Rita Hayes of the U.S.A. and Mr. Geoffrey Yu of Singapore, with praise for the dedication and commitment to excellence with which they served WIPO.
Dr. Idris said he shared the concern, referred to by several delegations, that equitable geographical distribution and gender balance should be respected in WIPO staffing. He noted that much progress had been made in this regard since his appointment as DG in November 1997. The number of member countries represented in the staff of WIPO rose from 68 in December 1997 to 94 in May 2006, representing an increase of 28 percent.
Dr. Idris also noted that the number of female staff in the professional and higher categories had been 63 out of 209 (30 percent) in December 1997, compared to 184 out of 433 (42 percent) in May 2006, an increase of 12 percent.
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The new team consists of the following Deputy Directors General:
And of the following Assistant Directors General:
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General Assembly to Decide Future Work on a Development Agenda
The Provisional Committee on Proposals related to a WIPO Development Agenda (PCDA), which met from June 26 to 30, decided to refer a decision on the future work of a development agenda for WIPO to the WIPO General Assembly, which will meet in September.
At its last meeting in February 2006, discussions on establishing a development agenda for WIPO resulted in agreement on a structure for future work under six main themes, grouping 111 proposals that were submitted by Member States. The Provisional Committee, which was established by the WIPO General Assembly in autumn 2005 to accelerate and complete discussions on this matter, agreed that the six theme structure would be the basis for continued discussions.
At this meeting, the PCDA discussed the proposals categorized under the different themes and Member States expressed their specific concerns in respect of these subjects. They highlighted the need to arrive at early decisions so that the process could be taken forward. A few proposals were made with regard to the future work program and recommendations to be submitted to the General Assembly. Delegations discussed them in detail and decided to leave this question to the General Assembly.
All delegations acknowledged the importance of the issues raised during the development agenda process and the need to continue discussions on how to enhance the development dimension in all of WIPO’s work.
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