Minutes - TRIPS Council - View details of the intervention/statement

Ambassador Carlos Pérez del Castillo (Uruguay)
World Trade Organization
E.iii WIPO-WTO Joint Initiative on Technical Cooperation
152. The representative of the Secretariat recalled that, when he had reported to the informal meeting of the Council in December 1998, he had indicated that some 30 developing country Members had expressed interest in taking advantage of the Joint Initiative. One new request had been received since that time specifically referring to the Joint Initiative. This figure of slightly more than 30 countries included two Members who had not yet specified the forms of cooperation which they were seeking. A number of other requests had been received which did not specifically refer to the Joint Initiative. The technical assistance programmes of the Organizations, individually, or jointly under the WIPO-WTO Cooperation Agreement concluded at the end of 1995, covered a larger number of countries. Since December 1998, the Secretariat had gone through the specific requests that had been received with the International Bureau of WIPO in detail, so as to work out and agree upon appropriate follow-up action. As a result of this, in a few cases, either the WTO Secretariat or the International Bureau of WIPO was consulting with the requesting countries to discuss their requests in more detail. As regards the other requests, it had been agreed that, in a limited number of instances, the WTO Secretariat would take the lead; in a number of other instances, joint events would be organized; and in respect of the remaining requests, which constituted the great majority of requests received, the International Bureau of WIPO would take the lead by integrating these requests into its programmes of assistance to each of the countries for 1999. The WTO Secretariat would contribute to those activities of WIPO to the extent that its limited human resources permitted. Finally, he mentioned that the ability of the WTO Secretariat to contribute to the Joint Initiative through the organization and financing of WTO or joint events was beginning to be seriously constrained by a shortage of funds. As Members were aware, the WTO technical cooperation programme relied very heavily on trust funds for the financing of such activities.
IP/C/M/22