The fifth meeting of WIPO’s Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore, which took place from 7-15 July 2003 in Geneva, Switzerland, marked the end of the Committee’s initial mandate.

Although delegates agreed on the importance of the continuance of its work for the next two years, they could not reach agreement on the content of its activities. With positions ranging from the continuation of the technical work and completion of documents, to the request for a negotiation process for a legally binding instrument, Member States did not reach consensus. The WIPO General Assembly, which is meeting in September 2003, will have to take the final decision. More information is available at: http://www.iucn.org/info_and_news/press/wipo.pdf and the report of the meeting will be available at: http://www.wipo.int/globalissues/igc/documents/index.html#5