IP/C/W/593/Add.7  
 
9 October 2013  
(13-5498)  Page: 1/4  
Council for Trade-Related Aspects of 
Intellectual Property Rights  Original: English  
 
 TECHNICAL COOPERATION ACTIVITIES: 
INFORMATION FROM MEMBERS 
AUSTRALIA  
Addendum 
The following communication, dated 08 October 2013, is being circulated at the request of the 
delegation of Australia.  
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 1  INTRODUCTION 
1.1.  Australia is pleased to respond to the Council for TRIPS' request for information from 
developed country Members on technical and financial cooperation activities in the area of intellectual property rights in fulfilment of Arti cle 67 of the TRIPS Agreement. This report updates 
Australia's 2012 report on the Australian Government's intellectual property (IP) related technical 
cooperation activities with developing and least developed countries to include the period 2012-13 and highlights some anticipated future work in this area. 
1.2.  Australia fulfils its Article 67 technical cooperation commitments through multilateral, 
regional and bilateral programmes and activities. Many are focused on developing countries in 
Australia's own Asia-Pacific region, and from 2012 Australia increased its IP engagement with Africa, in particular through cooperation with the African Regional Intellectual Property 
Organization (ARIPO) and South Africa. Australia also works closely with the World Intellectual 
Property Organization (WIPO), the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Secretariat, APEC's Intellectual Property Rights Expert Group (APEC IPEG) and the Association of Southeast Asian 
Nations (ASEAN) Secretariat in assisting developing and least developed countries to build their IP 
capacity and systems. 
1.3.  Key websites containing information on Australia's IP regime and which may be considered a 
technical cooperation resource include the IP Australia website covering patents, designs, trade 
marks and plant breeders' rights ( http://www.ipaustralia.gov.au ); the Attorney-General's 
Department website on copyright developments ( http://www.ag.gov.au/copyright ); and the 
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade website on international IP developments 
(http://www.dfat.gov.au/ip ). 
2  AUSTRALIAN ACTIVITIES WITH THE WORLD INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY 
ORGANISATION (WIPO) 
Australian-WIPO Funds-in-Trust 
2.1.  In 2012 the Australian Government donated $A2 million to WIPO to support developing and 
least developed countries continue to build their IP regimes and capabilities in facilitating innovation, creativity, investment and technology transfer. In June 2012, Australia and WIPO 
signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) co vering four themes under the Funds-in-Trust. 
These include development of the IP system, te chnology transfer (knowledge transfer and IP/C/W/593/Add.7 
 
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  commercialisation), addressing neglected tropical diseases and copyright and related rights 
(supporting the Trusted Intermediary Global Acce ssible Resources (TIGAR) project to assist the 
blind, visually impaired and other persons with print disabilities.  
2.2.  The following activities have been implemented under the theme of development of the IP 
system : 
 Development of national IP strategies – Cambodia (2013), Tonga (May 2013) 
 Sub-regional seminar on the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) - South Africa (February 
2013) 
 Sub-regional workshop on the PCT in the Asia -Pacific on PCT procedures and Practices –
Singapore (April 2013) 
 Patent examiner training on search and examination practices for International Search 
and Examination Authorities undertaken at IP Australia – Egypt (June 2013) 
 Facilitation of accession to the Madrid Protocol in the ASEAN region for Cambodia, 
Indonesia and Laos – participation of WIPO official - Phnom Penh, Cambodia (May/June 
2013)  
 IP stocktaking and needs assessment – Solomon Islands (April 2013) 
 Expert mission on trade mark examination - Cambodia (July 2013) 
 IP needs assessment – Vanuatu (May 2013) 
 Regional seminar on the legislative, economic and policy aspects of utility models 
protection system -19 participants from 13 regional countries - Malaysia (September 2012) 
 Expert mission on trademark examination – Cambodia (June 2013) 
 Expert mission on trademark examination – Laos (July 2013) 
 Study visit of Masters of IP law student from the Botswana IP office – Australia 
(November 2012) 
 National Seminar on copyright and related rights – Tonga (January 2013); and  
 Study visit on copyright and related rights – Samoa, Solomon Islands and Tonga IP 
officials - Australia (April 2013). 
2.3.  The following activities have been implem ented under the technology transfer (knowledge 
transfer and commercialisation) component: 
 Promote an understanding of how IP protecti on and exploitation can lead to economic 
benefits for a country and its enterprises, IP protection strategies and IP 
commercialisation strategies - a delegation of officials from Vietnam – Canberra, Australia (October 2012) 
 National Workshop on IP and Technology Management for Universities and Research and 
Development Institutions – Jakarta, Indonesia (May 2013) 
 National Training on "Successful Technology Transfer" – Bangkok, Thailand (May 2013) 
 National Workshops on IP valuation - Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam (June 2013). 
2.4.  The following activities have been implemented in 2013 under the theme of addressing 
neglected tropical diseases: 
 Placement of a Ghanian university lecturer at the University of California San Francisco 
Liver Center 
 Placement of an Egyptian professor at the Stan ford University to work on the effects of 
schistosomiasis infections 
 Placement of one researcher each from Cameroon and Nigeria with Novartis (Basel, 
Switzerland) to assist them learn about drug discovery and development; and  IP/C/W/593/Add.7 
 
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   Placement of a post-doctoral fellow from South Africa with AstraZeneca (Bangalore, 
India) to work in the area of disco very of inhibitors for tuberculosis. 
2.5.  The final theme of the Funds in Trust prov ides support to the Trusted Intermediary Global 
Accessible Resources (TIGAR) project, to facilitate cross-border exchange of copyright 
protected electronic files  for books in accessible formats between national libraries and 
charitable institutions (trusted intermediaries) serving the blind, visually impaired and other persons with print disabilities. Activities under this theme include fact finding missions to Namibia 
(February 2013) and Bangladesh (April 2013) on ca pacity building support within the context of 
the TIGAR project. 
WIPO Voluntary Fund for Accredited  Indigenous and Local Communities 
2.6.  In 2013, Australia contributed $A15,000 to the WIPO Voluntary Fund for Accredited 
Indigenous and Local Communities through the Australian WIPO Funds in Trust to support three 
Indigenous people from developing and least developed countries to participate in negotiations toward an international legal instrument (or instruments) to ensure the effective protection of 
traditional knowledge (TK), traditional cultural expressions (TCEs)/folklore and genetic resources. 
Indigenous people make a valuable contribution to these discussions, and Australia is committed to helping Indigenous and local communities to make the most of their IP. 
3  OTHER MULTILATERAL AND REGIONAL ACTIVITIES 
AANZFTA Economic Cooperatio n Support Programme (AECSP) 
3.1.  The ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand FTA Economic Cooperation Support Programme 
(AECSP)  consists of a Support Unit within the ASEAN Secretariat and activities worth up to $A25 
million over five years. The AECSP is designed to  provide technical assistance and capacity building 
to help ASEAN Member States, particularly LDCs, implement the free trade agreement. Intellectual property is a vital component, with the objective being to 'provide comprehensive support for the 
development of sound and balanced IP systems in the AANZFTA region'. 
3.2.  AANZFTA parties anticipated that IP-related assistance provided under the FTA's Economic 
Cooperation Work Programme could take the form of direct training for IP examiners and other 
government officials, IP judges, patent atto rneys, academics and the business community, and 
could also include study visits, policy discussions and seminars.  
3.3.  Currently, IP Australia is providing an on-going regional patent training programme  with 
support from the AECSP. The programme aims to enhance patent examination standards in 
participating offices. It provides in-depth patent examination training based on IP Australia's 
existing competency-based programme. It also pr ovides one-on-one mentoring by experienced IP 
Australia trainers using remote e-learning opportuniti es, as well as traditional face-to-face training. 
The IP offices of Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines are the first offices to participate in the 
two-year training programme which commenced in April 2013. 
3.4.  IP Australia also contributed to the IP Public Education and Awareness Community of Practice 
Workshop in Thailand in May 2013. The goal of this AANZFTA economic cooperation project is to 
develop a sustained and strategic approach to IP public education and awareness in order to maximise the effective use of the IP system by businesses and creators in the region. The beneficiaries should be not only regional innovators but the economies of ASEAN Member States.   
Cooperation with the African Regional In tellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) 
3.5.  In February 2012 IP Australia and the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization 
(ARIPO) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (M oU) on Industrial Property Cooperation. The 
MoU aims to build IP examiner capacity and facilitate the provision and exchange of information 
relating to IP training and quality standards. ARIPO has 18 members, all of which are developing or least developed countries. These are Botswana, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, 
Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Sierra Le one, Somalia, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, 
Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.  IP/C/W/593/Add.7 
 
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  3.6.  In April 2013 an examiner from ARIPO and one from the Kenyan IP office joined IP Australia's 
inaugural regional patent examination training pr ogramme to build patent examination capabilities 
by improving examiner competence. Th is activity is supported by WIPO. 
4  BILATERAL ACTIVITIES 
4.1.  Australian Customs Counsellors deliver IP training in relation to border measures and 
Australia's Notice of Objection Scheme on an on request, ad hoc basis. In February 2013 the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service (ACBPS) hosted a visit from the Deputy Head of 
Customs Reform and Modernization Board of Vietnam Customs. The purpose of the visit was to 
research information on counterfeiting and piracy issues between Australia and Vietnam. Discussions also took place on how to enhance cooperation on border enforcement between the two countries. In September 2013 the ACBPS Counsellor, India is expected to give a presentation 
at the International Conference on Trade in Counterfeit, Pirated and Smuggled Goods. This 
conference has been organised by the Federati on of Indian Chambers of Commerce (FICCI), 
Committee Against Smuggling and Counterfeiting Activities Destroying the Economy (CASCADE) 
on the benefits of international cooperation in enforcement. In March 2012, Customs Counsellors 
delivered an IP information session to China Customs and industry in relation to the domestic and international legislative framework governing the Notice of Objection scheme. In August 2011, 
Australian Customs provided information to India Customs and industry in relation to how 
counterfeit car parts are dealt with at the border under the Notice of Objection Scheme, and the exclusion of patents from the Scheme.  
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