WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONIP/C/W/109/Add.2
16 September 1998
(98-3510)
Council for Trade-Related Aspects
of Intellectual Property RightsOriginal:  English
TECHNICAL COOPERATION ACTIVITIES:  INFORMATION FROM
DEVELOPED COUNTRY MEMBERS
JAPAN
Addendum
The present document reproduces the updated information on Japan's technical and financial
cooperation activities relevant to the implementation of the TRIPS Agreement, which has beenreceived from the Permanent Mission of Japan by means of a communication, dated 27 August 1998.
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I. TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL COOPERATION IN THE FIELD OF INDUSTRIAL
PROPERTY
1. Human Resources Development
(a) 1000 by 2000 Programme
Since April 1996, the Japanese Patent Office (JPO) has been carrying out a cooperative
programme, called the "1000 by 2000 Programme", in  order to assist the development of human
resources in the field of industrial property for developing countries. The programme's target is to
invite a total of 1000 people from government and private sectors mainly in the Asia-Pacific region to
Japan to participate in training courses by the year 2000, which is the time-limit for developing
countries to comply with the WTO TRIPS Agreement.
From 1996 until the end of the Japanese fiscal year 1997, a total of 505 participants were
accepted from government organizations and private companies from 30 countries and one economy
(Chinese Taipei).
(i) Training programme for government officials
The JPO holds the following five group training courses on industrial property rights for
government officials annually.
- For APEC member economies
"Group Training Course in Industrial Property  for APEC Economies"is for administrative
officials working in areas related to IPR and examiners of IPR offices (training period - two months).
Participants are divided into four groups accordin g to their specialties: administration, patents and
utility models, industrial designs, and trademarks.IP/C/W/109/Add.2
Page 2
- For non-APEC economies
"Group Training Course in Administration of Industrial Property", focusing more specifically
on administrative aspects for the benefit of government officials in the area of IPR (training period -
one month).
"Group Training Course in Examination Practi ce on Industrial Property" is for examiners of
IPR offices (training period - two months).  Partic ipants are divided into three groups according to
their specialties: patents and utility models, industrial designs, and trademarks.
These three training courses are managed by the JPO in cooperation with the Japan
International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and the Asia-Pacific Industrial Property Center of theJapan Institute of Invention and Innovation (APIC, JIII).
- For Economic and Social Communication for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)
region
"Training course for IP Administration under the WIPO Funds-in-Trust/Japan" is for
administrative officials in areas relate d to IPR (training period - two weeks).
"Training course for IP Administration under the WIPO Funds-in-Trust/Japan" is for
examiners of IPR offices (training period - two week s).  Participants are divided into three groups
according to their specialties: patents and utility models, industrial designs, and trademarks.
These two training courses are managed by the JPO and organized by the World Intellectual
Property Organization (WIPO) in cooperation with APIC, JIII.
(ii) Training programmes for private sectorThe JPO also held the following group training courses on industrial property rights for the
trainees from private sectors.
- For APEC member economies
The programmes were divided into two categories: the course for management and the course
for operational staff.
 "Industrial Property Rights Training Course for Management" [held twice a year] (training
period - two weeks)
Participants of the course are from middle and senior management personnel or equivalent
positions in private companies, law firms, research institutes and educational organizations.
"Industrial Property Rights Training Course for Operational staff" [held six times a year]
(training period - three-four weeks)
Trainees who participate in the course are from operational staff in private companies, law
firms, research institutes and educational organizations.IP/C/W/109/Add.2
Page 3
- For non-APEC economies
"Training Programme on Industrial Property Management" (training period - two and a half
weeks)
The participants are from middle and senior management personnel or equivalent positions in
private companies, law firms, research institutes and educational organizations.
These training courses were conducted by APIC, JIII with the assistance of the Association
for Overseas Technical Scholarship (AOTS).
(b) Long-term fellowship
Under the project called long-term fellowshi p funded by WIPO Funds-in-Trust/Japan, a
faculty of law from India and a Chinese Patent Office (CPO) staff  member were invited to Japan to
study the intellectual property issues for a period of six months.
(c) The APEC/PFP Project (Overseas Training Programme)
"Partners for Progress" (PFP) is a new mechanism to further promote economic and technical
cooperation on the basis of mutual assistance and voluntarism in APEC. The PFP project on industrial
property rights was endorsed at the APEC Senior Official Meeting held in Cebu, the Philippines on
22 May 1996. This APEC/PFP course aims to foster a deeper understanding of the establishment andmanagement of industrial property systems by de veloping human resources to meet international
obligations with respect to industrial property protection.
In February and March 1997, the Government of Thailand conducted the first course in
collaboration with the Government of Japan through the JICA. The second course was also held inThailand in November and December 1997.
(d) Expert missions
In the 19 years until 1997, the JPO has dispatched 254 experts including patent experts to
intellectual property offices in developing countries: 100 experts through the WIPO Funds-in-
Trust/Japan, 118 for the JICA technical cooperation projects, and 36 for other purposes.
(e) Symposia
(i) WIPO Asian Regional Forum

In September 1997, the Asian Regional Forum (formerly called WIPO Round Table)
under the WIPO Funds-in-Trust/Japan was held  in Tokyo with the theme "Intellectual
Property in the 21st Century". The Forum invited senior officials from intellectual
property offices in the 22 Asian countries to meet and exchange views on the Forum's
theme.
(ii) ASEAN Intellectual Property Rights Seminar

The JPO held with the assistance of JIII, the ASEAN Intellectual Property Rights
Seminar in September 1997, in conjunction with the WIPO Asian Regional Forum.IP/C/W/109/Add.2
Page 4

(iii) WIPO Asian Regional Symposium
The WIPO Asian Regional Symposium on Industrial Property Strategy for Economic
Development was held in India in April 1998. Examination and discussions tookplace in the Symposium on the appropriate industrial property strategy for
accelerating technological and economic development.

2. Computerization and Information Processing

(a) Development of an information searching system

The Government of Japan started a cooperation programme to establish the Industrial
Property Information Center (IPIC) in Thai land under the JICA project-type technical
cooperation.
Under this cooperation project, patent information and know-how of office-
automation of the JPO, will be provided to Thailand. For a smooth technical transfer,
the Government of Japan will provide necessary equipment, dispatch experts, and
offer training programmes in Japan for Thai trainees.
With the above cooperation, the efficiency of the patent examination in the
Department of Intellectual Property of Thailand will be improved and technological
information will be provided to the public as a result. The  Government of Japan
contributes to the modernization of the industrial property administration and
development of Thai industry as a whole.
(b) Development of trademark retrieval system and administration systems
The Government of Japan dispatched two long-term experts to the Philippines to
improve their trademark retrieval system and to provide support for establishing a
trademark application processing system.
(c) Provision of the "Patent Abstracts of Japan (PAJ)" on CD-ROM
Since 1995, the JPO has been providing about 80 national offices and other
organizations all over the world with the PAJ, which is a collection of English-
translated abstracts of Japanese patent applications, on CD-ROM.
(d) Provision of IP laws on CD-ROM
Intellectual property laws of the United States, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the
Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Korea, China and Malaysia were collected on a CD-
ROM.  English translation had been done for non-English IP laws, in compiling theCD-ROM. The CD-ROMs were sent to APEC countries.
3. Assistance in Search and Examination
(a) Cooperation in patent examination
In 1994, the JPO started a cooperation programme in the field of patent search and
examination with Thailand and sent final examination reports on the patent
applications filed in both Japan and Thailand by Japanese applicants.IP/C/W/109/Add.2
Page 5
The JPO sent final reports for 74 cases in 1995 and 89 cases in 1996.
The JPO started the same cooperation programme with Indonesia. The number of
reports sent to Indonesia, were 101 and 55 in 1995 and 1996 respectively.
(b) Prior art search for private sectors and patent offices
The JPO provides up to 100 search reports per year for the government and private
sectors in developing countries and economies, mainly in the Asia-Pacific region,
upon their request to the WIPO International Bureau.
II. TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL COOPERATION IN THE FIELD OF COPYRIGHT
Through the WIPO Trust Fund of Japan, the Japan Copyright Office of the Agency for
Cultural Affairs has been carrying out "APA CE Program: Asia-Pacific Copyright Systems
Enhancement Program" since the Japanese fiscal year 1993.  The purpose of this Programme is,
through annual contribution to WIPO's "Developmen t Cooperation Program in the Field of Copyright
and Neighbouring Rights for Developing Countries," to provide Asia-Pacific countries with activities
which contribute to the dissemination and promotion of copyright systems.
This Programme is mainly composed of the following three activities:
(a) Annual Regional Symposia
1993:  in Tokyo, Japan (100 participants from 20 countries)
1994: in Phanga-Phuket, Thailand (60 participants from 20 countries)
1995: in Denpasar, Indonesia (60 participants from 20 countries)
1996: in Chang Mai, Thailand (30 participants from 20 countries)1997: in Manila, the Philippines (100 participants from 25 countries)

(b) Sub-Regional Seminar (for the South Pacific)
1995: in Suva, Fiji (30 participants from ten countries)
1997: in Nuku'alofa, Tonga (20 participants from ten countries)

(c) Training Programmes in Tokyo
1994: 5 participants from China, India, Indonesia and Mongolia
1995: 4 participants from the Philippines, the Republic of Korea, Thailand and Viet Nam
1996: 5 participants from Bangladesh, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Tonga
1997: 8 participants from Bhutan, China, Indone sia, Laos, Mongolia, Nepal, the Philippines
and the Republic of Korea
III. TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL COOPERATION IN THE FIELD OF PLANT
VARIETY PROTECTION
Through the UPOV Trust Fund of Japan, the Government of Japan has supported a
programme which provides Asian countries with se minars and workshops on plant variety protection
systems.
The seminars have been held since Japanese fiscal year 1991 for the purpose of contributing
to the promotion and establishment of the plant variety protection systems.  In addition, the workshopscheme has been set up since Japanese fiscal year 1996, in order to provide some practical knowledge
and technique relating to the plant variety protection.IP/C/W/109/Add.2
Page 6
Details of the seminars and the workshops which have been held are as follows:
1991 - Regional Seminar, 14 participants from China, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines,
the Republic of Korea, Singapore and Thailand, held in Japan

 1992 - Regional Seminar, 13 participants from China, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines,
Singapore and Thailand, held in the Republic of Korea

1993  - Regional Seminar, 18 participants from Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Malaysia,
Pakistan, the Philippines, Thailand and the Republic of Korea, held in China

1994  - National  Seminars in China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan and the Philippines

1995 - Regional Seminar, 16 participants from Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, Pakistan, the
Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Viet Nam, held in Indonesia

1996  - National Seminars in India and Bangladesh
- Regional Seminar, participants from Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and
Thailand, held in Viet Nam
- International Seminar, ten participants from Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan,
Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan, held in Kyrgyz
Republic
1997 - Workshop, 64 participants from Asia-Pacific countries, in cooperation with APSA
(Asia Pacific Seed Association), held in Australia

1998 - Workshop, 14 participants from China, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, the
Republic of Korea, Thailand, Viet Nam, in cooperation with WIPO, held in the United
Kingdom
IV. TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL COOPERATION IN THE FIELD OF BORDER
MEASURES
In 1997, Ministry of Finance, the Government of Japan started a training course in the field of
border measures for the enforcement of intellectual property rights.  The purpose of this programme is
to assist in the implementation of the TRIPS Agreement by the developing countries in the Asia-
Pacific region.
Details of the programme which have been held are as follows:1997 - 5 to 14 March, participants from China and Indonesia, held in Japan

1997 - 5 to 14 November, participants from the Philippines and Viet Nam, held in Japan
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