IP/C/W/632/Add.4  
 
3 October 2017  
(17-5311) Page: 1/3 
Council for Trade -Related Aspects of Intellectual 
Property Rights  Original: English  
 
 
TECHNICAL COOPERATIO N ACTIVITIES  
INFORMATION FROM MEM BERS  
NEW  ZEALAND  
Addendum  
The following communication, dated 22 September 2017 , is being circulated at the request of 
the delegation of New Zealand.  
 
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1  INTRODUCTION  
1.  The Council for Trade  Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) has requested 
reports from developed country members on their technical and financial cooperation programmes 
in favour of developing and l east developed country members.  
2.  This document provides an upd ate on New Zealand 's activities concerning technical and 
financial cooperation in the area of intellectual property (IP), for the period fr om 1 July 2016 to 
30 June 2017.  
3.  This request relates to Article 67 of the TRIPS Agreement which provides that "develo ped 
country Members shall provide, on request and on mutually agreed terms and conditions, technical 
and financial cooperation in favour of developing and least developed country Members this shall 
include assistance in the preparation of laws and regulati ons on the protection and enforcement of 
intellectual property rights as well as the prevention of their abuse, and shall include support 
regarding the establishment or reinforcement of domestic offices and agencies relevant to these 
matters, including the  training of personnel".  
2  GENERAL OVERVIEW OF NEW ZEALAND 'S TECHNICAL COOPERAT ION ACTIVITIES  
4.  New Zealand has undertaken technical cooperation activities at the multilateral, regional and 
bilateral during the 2016/2017 year. At the regional level, New Zealan d's bilateral and regional 
trade agreements provide a mechanism for policy dialogue and information exchange on IP w ith 
developing country members.  
5.  The ASEAN -Australia -New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (AANZFTA) has an intellectual 
property committee, where  parties exchange information on intellectual property issues of mutual 
interest and coordinate capacity building and technical assistance programmes within the region. 
This year New Zealand co -chaired the AANZFTA Intellectual Property Committee meeting in  
Indonesia and New Zealand attended a leads -level meeting of the I ntellectual Property Committee.  
6.  The primary New Zealand Government agencies that are involved in IP technical cooperation 
activities are the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment ( MBIE), of which both 
the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (IPONZ) and Plant Variety Rights Office are 
business units, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT).  IP/C/W/632/Add.4  
 
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  3  THE INTELLECTUAL PRO PERTY OFFICE OF NEW ZEALAND  
7.  The Intellectual Property  Office of New Zealand (IPONZ) provides on -going technical assistance 
on request to developing and least developed countries. New Zealand will continue to support 
future work, on request, to improve the intellectual property systems of developing countries . 
8.  IPONZ is recognised for its efficient and effective online services, high quality examination and 
registration processes. As a result, IPONZ hosts delegations and study visits from developing and 
least developed countries to provide practical training an d knowledge sharing.  
9.  This year IPONZ hosted a delegate from the Samoan Ministry of Commerce, Industry and 
Labour with an interest in building capability and knowledge about online systems. IPONZ provided 
information and training on its online case m anageme nt system and registers.  
10.  IPONZ also hosted a delegation from the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam on intellectual 
property enforcement and the structure and role of IPONZ and the Ministry of Busin ess, Innovation 
and Employment.  
4  THE PLANT VARIETY RI GHTS OFFICE  
11.  New Zealand has been a member of the International Union for the Protection of New 
Varieties of Plants (UPOV) since 1981. New Zealand, through the Plant Variety Rights (PVR) Office, 
actively participates in the UPOV Council, Administration and L egal Committee, the Technical 
Committee and in some of the Technical Working Parties.  
12.  The IPONZ Plant Variety Rights team acts as advisor to the East Asia Plant Variety Protection 
Forum. The team provides technical assistance by correspondence on request to forum members 
and participates in technical meetings by invitation.  
13.  An IPONZ representative from the Plant Variety Rights Office delivered a series of lectures on 
Distinctiveness, Uniformity and Stability (DUS) Testing  as part of a training programme for 
developing countries organised by the Korean International Cooperation Agency and the Korean 
Seeds Variety Services. Participating students were from Peru, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Philippines, 
Ghana and Sudan. The PVR te am also hosted a delegation from the Korean Seed and 
Variety  Service.  
14.  On two separate occasions an IPONZ representative was a tutor for sessions of the UPOV 
distance learning programme with students from East and South East Asian states.  
New Zealand Minis try of Foreign Affairs and Trade 's International Development Group  
15.  The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) manages the New Zealand Aid Programme. 
The majority of New Zealand 's aid is directed to developing and least developed country members 
in the Pacific and key partners in Asia. The New Zealand Aid Programme has a core focus on 
sustainable economic development. This includes supporting opportunities for private -sector led 
growth so that producers can increase the value from their production and resources, including 
their intellectual property. Further detail on programmes of relevance to TRIPS Article 67 can be 
found in New Zealand 's report on the implementation of Article 66.2 of the TRIPS Agreement.  
 
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  IP/C/W/632/Add.4  
 
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  ANNEX1 
TABLE OF SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES BY NEW ZEALAND  
FOR THE PERIOD 1 JUL Y 2016 TO 30 JUNE 20 17 
Category  Date  Location  Activity  
Information exchange  July 2016  Wellington, 
New Zealand  IPONZ hosted a delegation from 
the Intellectual Property Office of 
Vietnam on IP enforcement and 
the Ministry of Business, 
Innovation and Employment 's 
structure and role.  
Information exchange  October 
2016 Geneva, 
Switzerland  Delegates from IPONZ and 
the Ministry of Business, 
Innovation and Employment 
attended the WIPO General 
Assemblies and conducted  
a bilateral meeting with Malaysia.  
Practical training and 
information exchange  October 
2016 Distance 
learning  An IPONZ representative tutored 
the UPOV distance learning 
courses with students from Korea, 
Japan, Italy, Czech Republic and 
the Ukraine.  
Practical training, 
technical advice and 
information exchange  November 
2016 Christchurch, 
New Zealand  The PVR team at IPONZ hosted 
a delegation from the Korean Seed 
and V ariety Service in 
Christchurch.  
Practical training and 
information exchange  May 2017  Seoul, South 
Korea  An IPONZ representative delivered 
a lecture series on for the annual 
Plant Variety Protection Training 
Programme for developing 
countries organised by the Korean 
International Cooperation Agency.  
Practical advice and 
information exchange  July 2017  Apia, Samoa  An MBIE IP policy delegate 
presented at a copyright 
conference hosted by Samoan 
Ministry of  Commerce, Industry 
and Labour.  
Information exchange  June 2017  Auckland  New Zealand was co -chair of 
the AANZFTA I ntellectual Property  
Committee.  
Practical advice and 
information exchange  July 2017  Wellington, 
New Zealand  IPONZ hosted a representative 
from the Samoan Ministry of  
Commerce, Industry and Labour.  
 
 
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1 In English only.