DUSHANBE, January 29, 2009, Asia-Plus — Tajikistan is expected to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) this year.
In a note send to the Tajik Foreign Minister, the WIPO notified him of the deposit by the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan, on January 5, 2009, of its instrument of accession to the WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT), adopted at Geneva on December 20, 1996. It was noted that the Treaty would enter into force, with respect to the Republic of Tajikistan, on April 5, 2009.
The WCT is a special agreement under the Berne Convention. Any Contracting Party (even if it is not bound by the Berne Convention) must comply with the substantive provisions of the 1971 (Paris) Act of the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (1886). Furthermore, the Treaty mentions two subject matters to be protected by copyright: 1) computer programs, whatever may be the mode or form of their expression; and 2) compilations of data or other material (“databases”), in any form, which by reason of the selection or arrangement of their contents constitute intellectual creations. (Where a database does not constitute such a creation, it is outside the scope of this Treaty.)
Speaking in an interview with Asia-Plus, a source at the National Patent-Information Center of Tajikistan said that the Treaty would help the country optimize its own copyright legislation and allow protecting Tajik intellectual property abroad.
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations. It is dedicated to developing a balanced and accessible international intellectual property (IP) system, which rewards creativity, stimulates innovation and contributes to economic development while safeguarding the public interest.
WIPO was established by the WIPO Convention in 1967 with a mandate from its Member States to promote the protection of IP throughout the world through cooperation among states and in collaboration with other international organizations. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland.
WIPO’s vision is that IP is an important tool for the economic, social and cultural development of all countries. This shapes its mission to promote the effective use and protection of IP worldwide. Strategic goals are set out in a four yearly Medium Term Plan and refined in the biennial Program and Budget document.
The five strategic goals defined in the 2008-2009 Program and Budge are: promoting a balanced IP system and realizing its development potential; strengthening IP infrastructure, institutions and human resources; progressive development of international IP law; delivery of quality service in global IP protection systems; and greater efficiency of management and administrative support processes.
