Vietnam backs the compulsory public release of information on genetic resources and traditional knowledge on patents. It also agrees with the introduction of mechanisms to allow public access to information and enable the prosecution of offenders.

The Director General of Vietnam’s National Office of Intellectual Property, Ta Quang Minh, is currently leading a Vietnamese delegation to the 50th sitting of the World International Property Organisation (WIPO) in Geneva , Switzerland .

During the proceedings, Vietnam hailed the achievements that the WIPO development programme had made with projects that benefited Vietnam. They included a database access project for WIPO development research, a project to create trademarks for Ba Vi tea, Phu Yen fish sauce and Da Lat flowers and a course on intellectual property rights in the Vietnamese language.

A spokesperson for the Vietnamese delegation said that Vietnam is keen to continue receiving assistance from the WIPO to run advanced training courses on trademarks and patents.

Vietnam was pleased with the outcomes of the negotiations within the framework of the Inter-governmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Cultural Folklore (IGC). However, it stressed on the need to reach legally binding international agreements to prevent bio-piracy and the illegal use of genetic resources, traditional knowledge and folklore.

The sustainable use and protection of genetic resources, traditional knowledge and folklore can only be guaranteed by agreeing on regulations and responsibilities that are in line with the Convention on Biodiversity and the Nagoya Protocol, said the Vietnamese delegation.

Vietnam will support future meetings within the IGC, as well as those at the ministerial level to adopt these draft documents.

On the fringes of the event, the Vietnamese delegation met with several of its partners to lobby for more cooperation with other ASEAN member countries.-VNA