Reflecting on IPR Technical Assistance for Developping Countries and Transition Economies


by SAANA Consulting

Report of a workshop held at Burnham Beeches, 15 September – 17 September 2004, and sponsored by the Department for International Development PDF  •  2.74 MB

Ensuring adequate capacity within a range of institutions in developing countries and transition economies for handling Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) has become increasingly important in recent years. The process of reform begun in many countries has highlighted the challenges they face in designing, implementing, enforcing and regulating pro-competitive IPR regimes, tailored to their development needs.

Many developing countries also face serious constraints in participating effectively in international IPR standard setting at regional and multilateral levels. And a further central challenge – in the era of globalisation – lies in stimulating local innovation, creativity and technology transfer, as well as protection of traditional knowledge, using the IPR system to contribute to cultural, social and economic development.

These issues underline the importance – perhaps more than ever before – of high quality technical assistance and capacity building, tailored to meeting the varied needs of developing countries and transition economies. They also have significant implications for the ways in which IPR technical assistance and capacity building is planned, coordinated, designed, delivered, managed and evaluated by the range of international institutions, bilateral donors, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and other non-core providers of IPR technical assistance who are active in this sector.

As a contribution to responding to these issues, the UK Department for International Development (DFID), decided to sponsor a workshop entitled “Reflecting on IPR Technical Assistance to Developing Countries & Transition Economies”. The event was held from the 15th to 17th September 2004 at Burnham Beeches in the United Kingdom. The overall goal of the workshop was to promote debate amongst a cross-section of donors, providers and developing country partners that could form the basis for a substantive, purposeful dialogue amongst all of the concerned stakeholders.