Joint Proposal for IPR Cooperation Announced Under OBOR Framework

July 21 and 22, a high-level meeting of Intellectual property protection under ‘One Belt, One Road’ framework was held in Beijing. Nearly 50 countries participated and representatives from the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) were also in attendance.

According to the meeting report, participating countries agreed on the importance of IPR in economic development. Taking transnational cooperation and varying cultures into consideration, the participating countries announced a joint proposal based on a common vision to strengthen IPR protection and cooperation. The proposal included:

    
    Strengthening communication and cooperation on IPR laws, regulations, policies and strategies
    Supporting the establishment of mechanisms for relevant countries’ IP institutions
    Encouraging relevant countries’ pragmatic cooperation in IPR protection.
    Supporting the promotion of public awareness for IPR protection
    Supporting the education for intellectual property professionals
    Encouraging shared use of IP information in relevant countries. 

Based on the above initiatives, future IPR roundtables will be held to discuss specific issues and promote cooperation.