The Next Director General of WIPO will be Mr. Daren Tang

Today, on May 8, 2020, during the 60th General Assembly of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the next Director General was appointed officially. From October 1, 2020, during the next 6 years, Mr. Daren Tang, who held Chief Executive Position at the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS), prior to the appointment as Director General, will helm the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

Mr. Daren Tang noted, “I sincerely thank all Member States for their support and confidence in entrusting me with this immense responsibility in these unprecedented times. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused untold misery and brought the world to a standstill, but has also reminded us of our common humanity. More than ever, the WIPO community needs to unite to support our inventors, innovators and creators, all of whom are playing critical roles in helping us overcome this grave pandemic, whether it is in finding a cure for the virus, allowing us to stay connected through technology, or lifting our spirits during this challenging period.”

The candidacy of Mr. Daren Tang for the position of Director General of WIPO was offered by the Government of Singapore and, according to the procedure, the WIPO Coordinating Committee issued a recommendation for his appointment to the position. At the Coordination Committee (CoCo) meeting, which was attended by representatives of 83 member states of WIPO, including Georgia, Mr. Daren Tang received the majority - 55 votes. The candidacy nominated by the Government of Singapore was supported by the National Intellectual Property Center of Georgia Sakpatenti as well. Sakpatenti represents Georgia at WIPO since 1991.

Mr. Daren Tang has been the head of the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) since 2015. It is noteworthy that Sakpatenti cooperates with this Office since 2018, within the framework of the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the Offices. The Memorandum provides for the exchange of information and experience, organization of joint events and the development of common educational projects.

On September 30, 2020, the second term of Mr. Francis Gurry, Director General of WIPO, will be completed. He held this position for last 12 years. Mr. Francis Gurry as the WIPO Director General paid an official visit to Georgia in 2015, which laid the foundation for taking Sakpatenti-WIPO cooperation to a higher level. With the support of this Organization, a number of successful projects were implemented in Georgia, related to drafting Country’s strategy on intellectual property, improvement of the geographical indications protection system in Georgia, establishment of a training center and other global projects.

WIPO is the specialized United Nations (UN) agency, it is the global forum of IP policy, service, information and cooperation. WIPO assists its 188 member states in developing a balanced international IP legal system in order to satisfy the current needs of the public. WIPO renders business services to various countries and assists them in dispute resolution. It also offers advanced capacity building programs to allow developing countries to benefit from using intellectual property and offers free access to the unique knowledge banks of intellectual property.