Top global IP experts at today’s Geneva-backed Colombo deliberations

From left: WIPO Copyright Development Division Director Gao Hang, CISAC Asia-Pacific Committee Chairman and JASRAC Tokyo Senior Administrator Satoshi Watanabe,  Intellectual Property Advisory Commission Chairman Dr. JM Swaminathan, and Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiudeen

Many leading global intellectual property experts are converging in Colombo today for the launch of the two-day long World intellectual Property Day (WIPD) commemorations backed by Geneva’s World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).   

The two-day long Colombo sessions, referred to as sub-regional sessions, are a joint effort by WIPO and the National Intellectual Property Office (NIPO) under the Ministry of Industry and Commerce. The sessions will start with a high-level workshop for policymakers titled “Empowering Creativity for Sustainable Development and the Role of Copyright”. WIPO has given such importance to the Colombo event that WIPO Copyright Development Division Director Gao Hang is now in town to join the Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiudeen, and many other IP experts from India, UK, Tokyo and Sri Lanka, to move forward the deliberations.

Representing Sri Lankan IP expertise are Intellectual Property Advisory Commission Chairman Dr. J. M. Swaminathan, and former Intellectual Property Advisory Commission Chairperson Suganthie Kadirgamar. Also, a notable presenter is International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC) Asia-Pacific Committee Chairman, and Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers (JASRAC) Tokyo Senior Administrator Satoshi Watanabe.

The theme of this year’s WIPD is “Women in Innovation and Creativity”. Today’s Colombo sessions are part of over 230 worldwide events to celebrate yet another WIPD- an annual event that has been commemorated since 2000. 

During the sessions, WIPO is to support NIPO to finalise its National IP Action Plan, a milestone in Sri Lankan IP.