./.RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/GC/W/209
17 June 1999
(99-2463)
General Council Original:  Spanish
PREPARATIONS FOR THE 1999 MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE
Agreement on TRIPS
Proposals Regarding Extension of Transition Period
under Paragraph 9(a)(i) of the Geneva Ministerial Declaration
Communication from Cuba, Dominican Republic, Egypt, and Honduras
The following communication, dated 10 June 1999, has been received from the Permanent
Mission of Cuba.
_______________
1. Introduction
The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (hereinafter the
TRIPS Agreement) unquestionably constitutes a further step forward within the system of protection
of international intellectual property rights.  It reflects the search for minimum common standards in
the field of intellectual property, at the level attained by the industrialized countries.
By signing this instrument, many of the developing countries have found themselves obliged
automatically to adopt the accelerated pace of technological development of the developed countries,
and, hence to grant protection to the new emerging technologies, while still quite far from dealingwith the traditional innovations.
2. Proposal
The TRIPS Agreement necessitates the modernization of national intellectual property
systems, including legislations, enabling the developing countries, in the very long term, to takeadvantage of the institutions most useful to them, in addition to attracting the foreign direct
investment that is of importance to their economic development.
The challenge faced by the developing countr ies in adapting to the requirements of the
Agreement in the light of the technological and financial gap between the developing and thedeveloped countries, can be seen in the difficult and costly tasks that lie ahead.
These include:(1) Modernizing the administrative infrastructure (intellectual property offices and
institutions, the judicial system, the customs system, inter alia );WT/GC/W/209
Page 2
(2) modernizing and drafting new laws on the granting and protection of intellectual
property rights, i.e. substantive laws on the various forms of intellectual property;
civil and penal (substantive and procedural) codes for the protection of those rights;
special laws for the protection of plant varieties;  layout designs of integrated circuits
and software;  antitrust and unfair competition laws;  regulations on customsprocedures;  etc.;
(3) strengthening institutions and creating a culture for the protection of intellectual
property ranging from the training of judges , lawyers, patent agents, customs brokers
and officials with responsibility in the field to education of the public in general in the
exercise of their rights and the fulfilment of their obligations as right holders and
consumers;
(4) creating an appropriate framework for promoting research and development and
ensuring that developing countries do not continue to be mere consumers of foreign
technology.
Some of the above-mentioned tasks are already being carried out by many of the developing
countries.  Others remain to be undertaken, and this will only be possible if sufficient resources are
available.
Despite these efforts we note with concern that the end of the transition period allowed under
Article 65.2 of the TRIPS Agreement is now approaching.
Accordingly, we are requesting an extension of the transition period for the developing
countries.
__________