NATIONAL WORKSHOP ON THE NATIONAL INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY POLICY OF RWANDA

8th March 2009 • Co-organised with The Government of the Republic of Rwanda; UNCTAD

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Kigali
9th march 2009

The Government of the Republic of Rwanda in collaboration with the the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) are holding a workshop on the National Intellectual Property Policy of Rwanda at the Hotel Milles Collines (Kigali, Rwanda), 09:00 to 17:00, March 9, 2009.

The objective of the workshop is to examine the draft Rwanda national IP policy and strategy for implementation, as well as the IP needs assessment for the country.

In its decision of 29 November 2005 extending the transition period for least-developed countries (LDCs) to implement the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement), the World Trade Organization (WTO) Council for TRIPS also invited LDC Members to provide as much information as possible to the Council on their individual priority needs for technical and financial co-operation in order to assist them in taking steps necessary for the future implementation of the Agreement.

In this context, ICTSD received a request from Rwanda’s Ministry for Trade and Industry to provide assistance to conduct a technical and financial cooperation needs assessment in order to respond to the TRIPS Council decision. At the same time, UNCTAD also received a request from the Ministry for Trade and Industry to provide assistance in the elaboration of the country’s IP policy and strategy for implementation. UNCTAD and ICTSD have agreed to pool resources to carry out these activities.

The process started with a national stakeholder workshop organised by the Ministry of Trade and Industry, UNCTAD and ICTSD, in Kigali, in September 2008, followed by interviews with key stakeholders.