WIPO And ECLAC Discuss IP As A Development Tool

by Mike Godfrey, for LawAndTax-News.com, Washington

28 February 2005

The Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Dr. Kamil Idris, and the Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Dr. Jose Luis Machinea, met last week to discuss joint activities for the promotion of intellectual property as a tool for development in the Latin American and Caribbean region.

Under the terms of the agreement, WIPO and ECLAC agreed to develop research projects, methodologies, and guidelines at a national, sub-regional or regional level, particularly in areas relating to intellectual property and its impact on economic development.

A number of actions, including the joint organization of training courses on intellectual property (IP) for technology managers focusing on strategies for the protection of intangible assets, valuation of IP rights, integration of IP into business strategies, IP policies for universities and public sector R&D centres, management of IP rights, and licensing and technology transfer were agreed to this end.

ECLAC, headquartered in Chile, is one of the five regional commissions of the United Nations. The 33 countries of Latin America and the Caribbean are members of ECLAC, together with several North American (Canada and the United States of America) and European nations (France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) that have historical, economic and cultural ties with the region.

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