[A2k] Statememt by Egypt to the 2nd Session of the WIPO IIM

[Thiru Balasubramaniam]

Statement by Egypt

Second Intersessional Intergovernmental Meeting
On Development Agenda for WIPO
Geneva, 20-22 June 2005

Mr. Chairman,

My delegation is pleased to see you chairing the Second Session of this
important setting. We congratulate you for your re-election.

We also wish to attach ourselves to the statement made by Morocco on
behalf of the African Group.

Mr. Chairman,

As highlighted by the statement of the African Group, few days ago,
particularly on the 16th of June, a very significant signal of concern
was voiced by the Leaders and Heads of State and Government of the Group
of 77 on the current trends of the international intellectual property
system and the need for the development dimension to be fully integrated
in this system

This was clearly reflected in the Plan of Action adopted at the end of
their meeting in Doha, Qatar, in which the Leaders of this largest
grouping for developing countries, which consists of more than 130
Member States representing the majority of the international community,
explicitly called =93on WIPO, as a UN agency, to include in all its future
plans and activities including legal advice a development dimension that
includes promoting development and access to knowledge for all,
pro-development norm-setting, establishing development friendly
principles and guidelines for the provisions of technical assistance and
the transfer and dissemination of technology=94.

The Leaders further committed themselves =93to enhance the development
dimension of the international intellectual property rights system,
taking into account the different levels of development of developing
countries with a view to ensuring affordable access to necessary basic
products, including medicines and educational tools and software, the
transfer of knowledge, the promotion of research and stimulation of
innovation and creativity=94

Mr. Chairman,

We strongly believe that such a strong message emanating from the Second
South Summit is a clear reflection of our sincere concerns and strong
determination that in the reform of the United Nations, WIPO is not and
should not be an exception. It also demonstrates my delegation=92s
objectives to establish a comprehensive and effective development agenda
for WIPO. This is evidently an increasingly visible demand on the
international agenda and will undoubtedly continue to be so.

Mr. Chairman,

My delegation was keen to actively participate in the discussions on the
development agenda in the first session of this meeting in April and we
view its outcome as a positive step towards deepening the understanding
among us on the need to effectively integrate development in this house.

Having said that, and in order for us to hopefully reach the coming
session of the WIPO General Assembly with concrete deliverables, which
adequately addresses our concerns and ambitions, it is imperative for
this session to have a more focused and productive approach to the
various related issues before our hands.

Therefore, my delegation believes that the work programme suggested by
the Group of Friends of Development is very valid and important in
organizing a structured debate on the various proposals submitted by
Member States.

To this end, my delegation would like to thank those Members who
submitted new documents to this meeting, namely the Kingdom of Bahrain
and the United Kingdom. We had the opportunity to examine the submission
from our sister Arab country, the Kingdom of Bahrain, co-sponsored by a
number of Arab countries, and wished to make some preliminary remarks,
while we would be glad to make more detailed remarks on its specific
elements at a later stage when our debate becomes more structured.

Mr. Chairman,

We are of the view that the proposals in this document related to
technical assistance and capacity building are worth consideration. We
also appreciate the effort made by the Kingdom of Bahrain to share with
the membership, throughout this document, the role of WIPO in developing
their national IP regime and we are pleased to note their satisfaction
with the Secretariat, which has been mentioned numerously.

My delegation cannot agree more with the part of this document which
emphasizes that development cannot be the sole responsibility of WIPO.
This is a fact which we believe all Members agree with, and we are glad
to see it re-affirmed in this document.

One part of the document reaffirms that WIPO has always taken into
account and integrated the development dimension. In our view, it
appears that the message coming out of the South Summit, in which his
Majesty the King of Bahrain participated, contradicts with this
statement and reflects otherwise. If WIPO adequately integrates the
development dimension in its activities, we do not believe that the His
Majesty the King of Bahrain, His Highness the Prince of Qatar, His
Excellency the President of Lebanon and all other leaders of the Group
of 77 would have been keen to insert in the Summit Plan of Action such
an explicit, clear and strong call on WIPO.

On the other hand, my delegation finds the literature used in some parts
of this document to be intriguing. For example, there has been a
reference to the friends of development in a context which my delegation
did not quite understand. However, in the spirit of Arab solidarity, my
delegation would refrain from seeking elaborations or making specific
remarks in this regard.

At the end, Mr. Chairman, we again thank the Delegation of Bahrain for
its contribution and, as mentioned, we believe that its specific
proposals on technical assistance and capacity building merit careful
consideration.

We are also glad to see that there are now a number of Arab countries
tabling or cosponsoring proposals to this important process, and we
strongly encourage them to continue their active participation.

Thank you Mr. Chairman