Geneva, 15 June 1999
ECE/TRADE/99/12
PROTECTING
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS AND BOOSTING INVESTMENT IN CENTRAL
AND EASTERN EUROPE AND THE CIS
The United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe, through its Committee for Trade, Industry
and Enterprise Development, recently decided to establish an
Advisory Group to help tackle the problem of protecting
intellectual property rights in the transition economies of
central and eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent
States (CIS). The Advisory Group, comprising representatives of
both government and the business sector, will provide countries
with technical assistance and advice. It will begin its
activities in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
Counterfeiting and copying of
goods is costing Governments throughout Europe millions of
dollars in lost tax revenues and investment. Seeing their
competitiveness undermined, companies are reluctant to invest in
countries where such counterfeiting and the copying of goods is
widespread. Domestic companies are also reluctant to invest in
research and development and banks will not accept patents or
other intellectual property as loan collateral.
In a joint effort with
Governments and the private sector, the new Group will organize
training programmes and raise awareness among the local business
community as to the use of intellectual property rights. It will
also build links between enforcement officials and the business
community so as to improve implementation and protection.
The Group's activities should
help countries to attract a higher quality of foreign direct
investment (FDI), as well as to comply more rapidly with
important international standards and commitments in the area of
intellectual property rights.
"The priority is to attract
investment into the creative, innovative and high technology
industries of central and eastern Europe and the CIS", says Dr. Carol Cosgrove-Sacks, Director of the
UN/ECE Trade Division. "Governments have already shown strong commitment
to opening up their economies and are introducing new legislation
that meets the highest standards. But they lack the resources to
implement and enforce these laws". Under this new initiative, the private sector
will take on a shared responsibility for implementing the
projects.
Ms. Michaela Eglin, Geneva-based
representative of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC),
said that her organization was fully behind the UN/ECE
initiative."The ICC" she said " particularly supports the concept of a
public-private partnership. Governments and companies have a
common interest in creating an environment favourable to
investment and innovation and one key to this is to establish an
effective system for protecting intellectual property " . She added that the business community wished to
actively contribute to government efforts to improve the
intellectual property frameworks in their countries and that the
ICC would actively support and participate in the Group.
The Group will also work closely
with the World Intellectual Property Organization and the World
Trade Organization, both of which, together with the ICC, had
actively cooperated with UN/ECE in the preparations for this new
initiative.
For further information on
the Advisory Group and on UN/ECE's work regarding the protection
of intellectual property rights, please contact:
Mr. Geoffrey Hamilton
Trade Division
United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe
Palais des Nations
CH - 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Tel: + 4122 917 28 38
Fax:+ 4122 917 00 37
E-mail: [email protected]