The Worldwide Symposium on Geographical Indications, by the decision of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), will be held in Georgia. On June 14 and 15, Tbilisi will host the forum which will be attended by representatives of international and national associations, international organizations, national administrations of various countries, national intellectual property offices, associations of producers of GI products and GI specialists from around the world. The event, which is held every two years, is organized jointly by WIPO and the National Intellectual Property Center of Georgia. 

The Worldwide Symposium on Geographical Indications provides a global forum and platform for discussing international and national systems of protection of geographical indications, challenges, perspectives, recent developments and sharing experience. Within the Symposium issues relating to the GI protection system will be discussed, such as: the effect of geographical indications on economy and social well-being of the population, the role of geographical indications in the strategic branding of countries, etc. The event will bring together up to 250 guests from Italy, France, USA, China, Mexico, India, Australia, Georgia and other countries. The forum will be attended by representatives from WIPO, the National Institute of Origin and Quality (INAO), the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the World Trade Organization (WTO), as well as from the Commission of the European Union. The agenda of the Symposium includes panel discussion on the challenges and opportunities that exist in branding and marketing strategies of geographical indications, the participants will also review new developments in the field of geographical indications in various countries, will review and discuss the effects pf the promotion of GIs on the development of the tourism sector.

Within the Symposium, an exhibition and tasting will be held, during which 64 Georgian geographical indications registered by Sakpatenti will be presented, among these are Guda, Tkemali, Sairme, Churchkhela, Tvishi, Chacha, Ninotsminda Honey, Kutaisi Greens and other Georgian special products, as well as Qvevri. The status of a geographical indication informs the consumer about the origin of the product and the unique characteristics that are attributable to the place of origin. The characteristic environment of this place and the traditional knowledge of production existing among the local population there determine the high quality and specific features of such a product.