The General Assembly of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), which met from 24 September-3 October 2007, in Geneva, Switzerland, agreed to extend the mandate of the Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (IGC) for an additional two year-period.

Following lack of consensus at the IGC’s eleventh session (3-12 July 2007), this decision renews the General Assembly’s 2005 directions to the IGC to accelerate its work, and to focus in particular on the international dimension of intellectual property and genetic resources, traditional knowledge and folklore or traditional cultural expressions. The mandate excludes no outcome, including the possible development of an international instrument or instruments in this field without prejudice to the work pursued in other fora.
The highlight of this year’s General Assembly was the decision to adopt a Development Agenda, consisting of a series of recommendations to enhance the development dimension of WIPO’s activities. The recommendations include a set of 45 agreed proposals covering six clusters of activities including: Technical Assistance and Capacity Building; Norm-setting, Flexibilities, Public Policy and Public Knowledge; Technology Transfer, Information and Communication Technology and Access to Knowledge; Assessments, Evaluation and Impact Studies; and Institutional Matters including Mandate and Governance.
Links to further information
WIPO press release, 2 October 2007
WIPO press release, 1 October 2007