The present document reproduces the updated information on the European Communities and their member States' technical and financial cooperation activities relevant to the implementation of the TRIPS Agreement, which has been received from the Permanent Delegation of the European Commission by means of a communication dated 4 October 2002. _______________ This document updates the information provided in the year 2001 in document IP/C/W/306/Add.6. It concerns activities relating to the TRIPS Agreement carried out during the past year (Summer 2001 to Summer 2002) by the European Communities, as well as by Austria, Finland, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Though involving several EC member States, the assistance in search and examination of inventions (under the PCT or in the framework of other WIPO initiatives, such as ICSEI) is not mentioned in this document. Further information on the activities of the remaining member States of the European Communities will be distributed as supplements to this document. The document also includes a presentation of the technical co-operation activities carried out by the European Patent Office (EPO) in 2001 and 2002, both as regards its own technical co-operation activities and the implementation of certain EC-sponsored programmes. In addition, the EC and their member States draw the attention of the Members of the TRIPS Council to the fact that considerable technical assistance is provided to candidate countries for EU-accession (Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Turkey). This is carried out through several instruments and programmes, under which the Phare Programme.