WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
IP/C/W/575 
31 August 2012 
 (12-4708) 
Council for Trade-Related Aspects of 
Intellectual Property Rights Original: French 
 
 
 
PRIORITY NEEDS FOR TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL COOPERATION 
 
Communication from Mali 
 
 
 According to paragraph 2 of the Decision of 29 November 2005 on the Extension of the 
Transition Period under Article 66.1 for Least Devel oped Country Members, "all the least developed 
country Members will provide to the Council for TR IPS, preferably by 1 January 2008, as much 
information as possible on their individual priority needs for technical and financial cooperation in 
order to assist them taking steps necessa ry to implement the TRIPS Agreement". 
  This document reproduces the information provid ed to the Secretariat by the delegation of 
Mali in a communication dated 3 August 2012.  
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I. CONTEXT AND JUSTIFICATION 
1. In the context of the Uruguay Round of multilate ral negotiations, the G overnment of Mali, 
desiring to reduce distortions and impediments to in ternational trade, and taking into account the need 
to promote effective and efficient protection of inte llectual property rights and to ensure that measures 
and procedures to enforce intellectual property right s do not themselves become barriers to legitimate 
trade, recognized the need for new rules and disciplines under the Agreement on Trade-Related 
Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). 
2. The elaboration of such rules requires, at th e outset, the interactive participation of all 
stakeholders in the implementation of the TRIPS Agre ement and, at a later stage, the strengthening of 
the human, institutional, organiza tional and logistical capacities of all potential users of the 
intellectual property system for the sake of effectiv e and efficient exploitati on of intellectual property 
assets for socio-economic development purposes in Mali. 
II. OVERALL OBJECTIVE 
3. The overall objective is to promote the creati on of a framework conducive to the protection 
and promotion of intellectual property, and indeed the effective and efficient use of the intellectual 
property system in Mali's development policy and strategy. 
III. SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES 
 Strengthen the legislative and regulatory framework for protection, promotion and 
effective and efficient use of the intellectual property system; IP/C/W/575 
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   strengthen human and material capacities of the Government departments responsible 
for managing intellectual property assets (Malian Centre for the Promotion of Industrial Property - CEMAPI;  Malian Copyright Bureau - BUMDA); 
 involvement of non-State entities in the promotion of intellectual property; 
 strengthen the human and physical capacities of Government departments responsible 
for punishing infringements of intellectual property rights (Customs, judicial police); 
 strengthen the technical innovation capacity  of research and development facilities 
(universities, higher education establishm ents, research institutes) and trade 
chambers; 
 promote the strategic use of industrial property to enhance business competitiveness. 
IV. EXPECTED RESULTS 
 The legal and institutional environment meet s international standards for effective 
action to combat intellectual property rights infringements; 
 the Government departments responsible  for implementing the TRIPS Agreement 
(Malian Centre for the Promotion of Indus trial Property, Malian Copyright Bureau, 
Customs, judicial police, etc.) have adequa te infrastructure to take effective action 
against infringements of intellectual property rights (information technology 
equipment, means of transport); 
 reduction of infringements of intellectual property rights; 
 Mali's legal framework attracts private investment through the establishment of 
conditions favouring the effec tive implementation of intellectual property principles; 
 creative industries are encouraged and promoted; 
 agricultural products are more competitive. 
V. ACTION PLAN 
Mali's priority needs for the implementati on of the TRIPS Agreement are defined under 
four (4) priority objectives: 
 Objective 1:  strengthening the institutio nal, legislative and regulatory framework 
 
- Technical assistance in the formulati on of policies and programmes relating to 
intellectual property; 
 
- assistance in developing national legislation to endow Customs and the judicial police 
with the necessary powers to implement the TRIPS Agreement; 
 
- strengthening the human capacity of G overnment departments responsible for 
implementing the TRIPS Agreement; 
 
- assistance in reinforcing the legislative fr amework in new intellectual property fields, 
as a tool for protecting traditional knowledge and folklore;  IP/C/W/575 
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- establishment of institutional and regulatory mechanisms to modernize the system for 
the protection of literary and artistic property; 
 
- restructuring collective rights management; 
 
- implementation of the management of related rights; 
 
- implementation of the WIPOCOS system. 
 
Objective 2:  strengthening the human and physi cal capacities of bodies involved in implementing the 
TRIPS Agreement 
 
- Organization of a national workshop on viol ations of intellectual property rights and 
ways of enforcing such rights; 
 
- organization of a national workshop on th e implementation of the TRIPS Agreement; 
 
- training of IP specialists; 
 
- training of innovative research workers in the exploitation of scientific and technical 
information contained in patent documents; 
 
- promotion of IP education in univers ities and technical and vocational training 
colleges. 
 
Objective 3:  strengthening the technological capacity of IP system users 
 
- Establishment of a technology and innova tion support centre in universities, higher 
education establishments and research and development centres. 
 Objective 4:  IP promotion 
 
- Creation of an early warning system for ow ners of industrial property rights in order 
to alert them to unfair trading practices such as counterfeiting and piracy; 
 
- construction of a national IP museum; 
 
- exchange of experience in IP rights management; 
 
- organization of study tours for the mana gers of bodies responsible for implementing 
the TRIPS Agreement in emerging countries (India, Singapore) in order to learn 
about the experience of those countries in the judicious use of IP assets for 
socio-economic development purposes. 
 
The achievement of these objectives will be b acked up by a communication strategy, based on 
the following needs:  
 - Purchase of adequate and effective communication equipment (computers equipped 
with scanners and webcam, digital cameras,  cameras, liaison vehicles) for CEMAPI 
and BUMDA; 
 IP/C/W/575 
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   - production of national televisi on broadcasts under the so-called " coin des créateurs " 
(creators' corner) devoted to debates on copyright and related rights; 
  - production of commercials on counterfeiting and piracy; 
 
 - organization of information caravans on intellectual property in the main towns of the 
country; 
  - media events relating to intellectual property;  
 - production of a monthly journal on intellectual property; 
  - training for journalists on new communication techniques in the field of intellectual 
property. 
 
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