Egypt: Launch of WIPO Development Agenda Group

At the meeting on 26^th April 2010 of the WIPO Committee on Development and Intellectual Property (CDIP), the Egyptian Ambassador, Mr.Hisham Badr, announced that a new group of developing countries named the WIPO Development Agenda Group (DAG) had been formed. The DAG comprises WIPO member states that are like-minded in their support for a development-oriented perspective on IP issues, and the mainstreaming of the development agenda across all areas of WIPO's work. The DAG currently has 18 developing countries, Algeria, Brazil, Cuba, Djibouti, Ecuador, Egypt, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Uruguay and Yemen. Egypt currently coordinates the Group. According to the statement by the Ambassador, the adoption of the Development Agenda by WIPO's General Assembly in 2007 was a milestone in achieving the aspiration of developing countries for a paradigm shift from viewing IP as an end in itself to viewing it as a means to serve the larger public goals of social, economic and cultural development. The implementation and mainstreaming of the recommendations of the Development Agenda (adopted by the WIPO General Assembly) now presents a considerable challenge.  It requires a sustained and multi-faceted approach to the range of WIPO activities. A 4-page document, the Development Agenda Group's Guiding Principles Paper, is attached to the Egyptian statement, which provides the background to the Development Agenda initiative by developing countries in WIPO, and gives details on the group's views on how the Development Agenda should be implemented.

Source: South Bulletin, 3^rd May 2010