IP/C/W/610/Add.2  
 
1 October 2015  
(15-5081)  Page: 1/7  
Council for Trade-Related Aspects of 
Intellectual Property Rights  Original: English  
 
  TECHNICAL COOPERATION ACTIVITIES: 
INFORMATION FROM MEMBERS 
CANADA 
 Addendum 
The following communication, dated 23 September 2015, is being circulated at the request of the 
delegation of Canada.  
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 1.  Pursuant to Article 67 of the Agreement on  Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property 
Rights (TRIPS), the Council for TRIPS requests that developed country Members report on their 
technical and financial cooperation programmes in favour of developing and least developed country Members. The present document provides an update on Canada's activities concerning 
technical and financial cooperation in the area of intellectual property in favour of developing and 
least developed country Members, covering the 2014-2015 period.  
2.  Canada has undertaken a number of technical cooperation activities at the multilateral, 
plurilateral and bilateral levels. At the multilateral level, Canada works in close collaboration with 
the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO Examples of the Canada's regional activities 
include the work undertaken in the context of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Intellectual Property Rights Expert's Group (APEC-IPEG), wh ere Canada participates in the organization's 
biannual deliberations aimed at sharing information and best practices on intellectual property 
rights.   
3.  The following summary provides an update of activities, which are mainly administered by the 
Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO), the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and 
Development (DFATD, incorporating the former Canadian International Development Agency), the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Health Canada (HC) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). Other Canadian institutions, such as the Centre for Trade Policy and Law 
(CTPL) and the University of Ottawa are also involved in international technical cooperation efforts.   
1  PROGRAMMES BY DEPARTMENT, AGENCY OR ORGANIZATION 1.1  Canadian Intellectua l Property Office (CIPO)
1 
4.  CIPO has been a longstanding contributor to the World Intellectual Property Office's (WIPO) 
technical cooperation activities.  Since June 1997, CIPO, in partnership with WIPO, has organized and delivered specialized annual training courses in the area of trade-marks and patents to senior 
intellectual property executives from developing and least developed countries. 
5.  CIPO's Workshop on "the Application of Mana gement Techniques in the Delivery of Intellectual 
Property Services" is part of the WIPO Profe ssional Development Programme aimed at providing 
general and specialized training to senior intellectual property executives from developing and 
                                               
1 An overview of CIPO's international initiatives is provided at: http://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/cipointernet-
internetopic.nsf/eng/wr02324.html#apec.  IP/C/W/610/Add.2 
 
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  least developed countries. The WIPO/CIPO Workshop is open to nationals from the following 
Regions: Latin America; Caribbean Region; Asia-Pacific; the Middle East; Africa; and Eastern Europe. The Workshop includes presentations on topics such as quality management, leveraging international relationships, understanding client needs, the challenges of designing a proper 
national intellectual property policy and the history of WIPO and its challenges. Furthermore, the 
Workshop also provides participants with insight into the Canadian Intellectual Property system 
and the management techniques used at CIPO, with a view to improving the capacity of 
intellectual property official s in developing countries.  
6.  The 2015 Edition of WIPO/CIPO Executive Workshop on "the Application of Management 
Techniques in the Delivery of Intellectual Property Services" was held from May 11-15, 2015. Twelve Senior Officials from Vietnam, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Ghana, Mozambique, Tunisia, South 
Africa, Egypt, Brazil, Cuba, Mexico and Romania participated in the 5-day Workshop. 
7.  CIPO, as a PCT International Authority also hosted a training activity for examiners from the 
Chilean Institute of Industrial Property. The trai ning took place in Santiago, Chile and Ottawa, 
Canada.  
8.  CIPO also provides other activities in favor of developing and least developed country 
Members, including the following:  
 Performing state-of-the-art searches under the WIPO Patent Information Searches for 
developing countries;  
 Providing search and examination reports of patent applications under the WIPO 
Programme of International Cooperation in the Search and Examination of Inventions 
(ICSEI). CIPO performed  requests in 2015; and 
 Supplying free copies of Canadian patent documents for developing countries, upon 
request from WIPO.  
1.2  Department of Foreign Affair s, Trade and Development (DFATD) 
9.  DFATD's development branch manages development assistance and aims to manage Canada's 
support and resources effectively and accountably to achieve meaningful, sustainable results as 
well as engage in policy development in Canada and internationally, enabling Canada's effort to 
realize its development objectives.  DFATD is responsible for various technical cooperation and financial cooperation programmes with developing countries which seek to provide support to legislation reform.  Such programmes include
2: 
 National Legislative Development project (Vietnam) - The objective of the project 
is to strengthen the legal foundations for economic growth through an integrated programme of reforms to the Vietnamese legislative development process. It addresses 
several priorities of the Government of Vi etnam's legal reform agenda, including: the 
development of laws that are clear and more  easily implemented; improved review of 
legislation to ensure that it is consistent internally and with other legislation; and more 
effective public participation in the lawmaking process. The project addresses these 
concerns through an integrated work programme  addressing all points of the legislative 
development process, with attention to legi slation that supports economic growth and 
development.  
 Canada-Americas Trade-related Tec hnical Assistance Program (CATRTA)  – The 
programme provides development assistance to Canadian free trade agreement partners in the Americas, which are DFATD countries of focus for development assistance. The 
programme began in 2010, will end in September 2016 and has provided assistance to 
Colombia, Peru and Honduras. In 2012 and 2013, the programme helped Colombians in the public and private sectors to leverage intellectual property (IP) in Colombian 
agricultural products to generate income th rough IP branding, maximizing intangible IP 
                                               
2 More information on DFATD's programmes are available through the DFATD project browser: 
http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/cidaweb/cpo.nsf/searchBasicEn?readForm IP/C/W/610/Add.2 
 
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  value and innovation. For example, pro bono IP legal counsel was provided, Colombians 
were counselled on how to use IP systems to protect their products for export, and alerted to the need for more focus on the licensing of agricultural research supported by public funds. 
 Canadian-Caribbean Cooperation Fund  (Antigua and Barbuda, Anguilla, 
Barbados, Belize, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaic a, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, 
Montserrat, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, 
Dominica, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines)  - The goal of the Canadian-Caribbean 
Cooperation Fund (CCF) is to advance public sector reform and to contribute to improving the environment for business development in the Caribbean.  The purposes are: (1) to strengthen public sector entities for the effective and efficient delivery of 
services and (2) to address bottlenecks to private sector development and business 
investment. Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) is the organization responsible for managing the CCF on behalf of DFATD. PWGSC has established a network 
of local fund coordinators, currently based in Guyana, Antigua, and Jamaica, who have 
been contracted to serve local needs, facilitate the application process and monitor local CCF initiatives. The CCF provides technical assistance in response to initiatives proposed 
by local government ministries, regional organizations, business associations or 
institutions such as universities. These initiatives aim primarily to increase local governments' capacities to formulate effective policies, to deliver efficient services, and to enhance the climate for business development. 
 Municipal Partners for Economic Development Project (Mali, Tanzania, 
Burkina Faso, Bolivia, Cambodia, Nicaragua, and Vietnam)  -The Federation of 
Canadian Municipalities' (FCM) project aims to enhance sustainable and equitable 
economic growth in selected developing countries in Africa, Asia and the Americas. Its 
specific purpose is to support local governments and local government associations (LGAs) in these countries to enable them to provide more effective services that advance 
sustainable and equitable local economic de velopment. The FCM co-manages the project 
with the seven national LGAs. Technical assistance is provided to LGAs to increase their capacity for policy development and political representation, so that national legislation, regulations and policies are supportive of an increased local government role in 
economic development. As well, technical assistance supports their efforts to establish 
training and knowledge-sharing programmes on sustainable and equitable economic development.  
10.  On June 20, 2014, Canada announced the establishment of the Canadian Trade and 
Development Facility (CTDF),   which will provide technical assistance and capacity building to 
developing countries in order to help them negotiate, implement, adapt to and benefit from Free 
Trade Agreements (FTAs) and Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreements (FIPAs). 
The CTDF is comprised of three components: (1) an Expert Deployment Mechanism (EDM), which 
is not yet operational but will provide just-in-time trade-related technical assistance in response to needs expressed by partner countries related to adapting to an FTA or FIPA with Canada; (2) an 
alliance with the Trade Facilitation Office (TFO) Canada, called the Trading Partners Responsive 
Facility (TPRF), which is fully operational and entails small-scale projects that respond to specific trade promotion requests from negotiating partners; and (3) a commitment to consider the 
development of other sustainable economic growth (SEG) projects, if required. The CTDF will be 
allocated up to $25 million per year. The key focus is on countries with which Canada has or is 
developing trade agreements, and the CTDF could be used to help developing countries implement 
the intellectual property aspects of FTAs with Canada. 
1.3  International Developmen t Research Centre (IDRC) 
11.  Part of Canada's foreign affairs and deve lopment efforts, the International Development 
Research Centre (IDRC), an arm's length crown co rporation, invests in knowledge, innovation, and 
solutions to improve the lives of people in the developing world. IDRC provides financial support to 
researchers in developing countries to work on problems crucial to their communities; engages with researchers throughout the innovation process; and facilitates access to information and 
services, as well as to researchers, policymakers and business people.  IP/C/W/610/Add.2 
 
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  12.  IDRC focuses on 3 thematic areas: agricult ure and the environment; inclusive economies; and 
technology and innovation. Notably, the Information and Networks (I&N) programme, which falls under the thematic and innovation thematic area, supports research on open development, digital 
rights, and access to the internet and mobile phones. Recent outcomes of IDRC programmes 
include the following: 
 Canada's Science, Technology and Innovation Council and Chile's National Innovation 
Council for Competitiveness, together with IDRC, signed a Memorandum of 
Understanding to establish a new platform for collaboration that strengthens scientific 
advice to governments. The new platform will convene the first global meeting of innovation advisory councils.  
 As the Burmese government pursues greater digital connectedness to enhance 
prosperity, IDRC helped to equip parliamentarians and civil society to participate 
effectively in the policy development process. In July IDRC and the Department for International Development (DFID) backed the Asian think tank LIRNEasia and Mynamar 
ICT Development Organization in hosting a training workshop for Burmese Members of 
Parliament, covering topics in ICTs and governance. Eighteen members of Parliament from six political parties took part, including the ruling party and the official opposition.  
Participants gained insights into the significance of ICTs, the role of social media in 
citizen engagement, and how digital tools are being used by poor micro-entrepreneurs in 
Burma. IDRC also launched a Burmese-langua ge edition of Information Lives of the 
Poor: Fighting Poverty with Technology.  
 Work by IDRC grantee Open African Innova tion Research and Training (Open A.I.R) 
informed Egypt's new Strategy on Open Source Software. Open A.I.R. demonstrated how open source solutions could improve access to knowledge and innovation in various 
sectors, and accelerate growth among local technology-based industries, including 
Egypt's music industry. South Africa's broadb and policy “South Africa Connect: Creating 
Opportunities, Ensuring Inclusion” was designed with expert advice from IDRC grantee 
Research ICT Africa.  
13.  IDRC has a number of research programmes that aim to provide technical assistance to 
developed and least developed countries, including the following
3: 
 Open Data for Development initiative  (8M$;2015-2017) supported by IDRC, Foreign 
Affairs, Trade and Development Canada, and the World Bank, the goal of this initiative is 
is to scale innovations that are working, and to strengthen coordination among other open data initiatives to ensure they benefit people in developing countries. The 
program's objectives are: to help developi ng-country governments, entrepreneurs, and 
civil society create and implement national and global action plans to harness open data for development; to support developing-country governments to plan, execute, and 
manage national open data initiatives; to increase reuse of open data in developing 
countries by supporting appropriate data standards, guidelines, solution-driven applications, and demand-side capacity, helping to bring about social and economic innovation; to better understand  the relationship between open data initiatives and 
socio-economic development, informing the quality and reach of future open data 
initiatives. 
 African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) : IDRC is implementing 
Canada's $20 million contribution to expand the network of Institutes for Mathematical 
Sciences in Africa.  AIMS provides rigorous mathematics training to post-graduate African students. Mathematical sciences are the backbone of a modern economy. 
Solutions to complex challenges in health, agriculture, and finance, for example, all 
require advanced mathematical modelling skills. The Initiative supports Africa's top students to enroll in a rigorous 10-month graduate-level course that leads to a master's degree in mathematical science. AIMS centres are located in Tanzania, South Africa, 
Senegal, Ghana, and Cameroon.   
                                               
3 A list of IDRC's programs can be accessed on the IDRC website : http://idris.idrc.ca/app/Search  IP/C/W/610/Add.2 
 
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   Scaling African Technology Start-Ups  ($1.4M; 2015-2018): Technological innovation 
is becoming a major economic and social development driver in Africa. Recent advances in digital connectivity, even among the poor , show the promise of open collaborative 
business models to scale and commercialize innovations. This project aims to explore 
whether and how networked, open, and collaborative innovations help technology start-
ups scale and seize global economic opportunities. An interdisciplinary team of African researchers will study the economic potential of Africa's emerging collaborative 
innovations in informal sector digital innovation enterprises, community-based 
businesses, entrepreneurship at high technology hubs.  
 Pervasive Technologies: Access to Knowledge (A2K) in the Marketplace (India)  
- This project explores the interplay between  intellectual property and the production 
and deployment of pervasive networked techno logies and seeks to provide a supply-side 
picture of how intellectual property plays a role in the proliferation of access technologies.  The resulting body of research is expected to shed light on how to better 
promote access to knowledge in Asia, with a view to influencing intellectual property 
laws and practices. 
 Improving the Integration of Young Af rican Researchers into Research and 
Innovation Systems (Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Senegal) -  This project explores 
opportunities available to young researchers in  Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Senegal) to work in private institutions and research centers, intellectual property services, norms and standards services, nongovernmental organizations and think tanks. Contracts with 
associations and entrepreneurs will allow th em to define their needs and propose ways 
of inserting young researchers into the business world.  The goal is to turn young researchers into productive citizens, useful to their society, internationally competitive 
and aware of their contribution to  the development of the continent.  
 Copyright and Innovation in the Developi ng World (India, Colombia, Brazil, and 
Chile) - This project provides evidence to support governments grappling with 
intellectual property questions as they are key for facilitating economic growth and 
innovation in the digital economy. By exploring the difference copyright law makes to economic, social, and cultural outcomes, this project will inform policies that support innovation and entrepreneurship in developing countries.  
 Developing a Framework for Strengthening the Linkages between 
Universities/Public Research Institutes an d the Private Sector in Africa (Kenya, 
Rwanda)  - This project explores the factors that lead to commercializing universities' 
and public research institutes' (PRIs) outp uts, and shared lessons learned and best 
practices that can be adapted and adopted within Africa. This study examined: challenges to commercialization, such as competencies and skills; the role of 
governance, including institutional policies,  habits, culture, practices, and power 
relations; and, the role and suitability of existing intellectual property rights frameworks to the transfer or exchange of research outputs between universities, PRIs, and the 
private sector.  
 Scoping Study for Cyber Policy Capacity  Building in Developing Countries -  This 
scoping project will develop the conceptual background needed to achieve well-crafted cyber policies. The goal is to foster open, secure, and reliable information systems and 
communications infrastructure to support international trade and commerce. It is also 
important that such policies ensure sound, intelligent security while protecting free expression and innovation. The project team will strive for multifaceted discussions of 
the challenges that exist where security , human development, and civil liberties 
intersect. The funds will be used to commission two scoping and background papers, and hold a workshop. It is expected to lead to a fuller understanding of the cyber policy issues in the developing world. The outcome will be an agenda for action to build 
knowledge and skills in cyber policy development in developing countries.  
 Canadian International Food Security Research Fund (CIFSRF)  ($124M): 
Partnerships between Canadian and developing country researchers is one way that 
IDRC helps support technology transfer.  The Canadian International Food Security 
Research Fund (CIFSRF), funded by IDRC an d DFATD, supports research in agricultural IP/C/W/610/Add.2 
 
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  innovation and fosters collaboration between developing-country researchers and 
Canadian experts.  Now in its second phase,  CIFSRF is building on earlier results to 
reduce post-harvest losses and commercialize livestock vaccines: http://www.idrc.ca/EN/Documents/CIF SRF-Call-5-1-Backgrounder-ENG.pdf  
 Contagious bovine pleuropneumonia (CBPP), a highly contagious respiratory 
disease of cattle, has serious economic and trade consequences for sub-Saharan Africa. But there is hope: researchers from Kenya and Canada are partnering with 
vaccine manufacturers, government regulators, and pan-African organizations to 
commercialize and mass produce a practical and affordable solution.  
  Researchers from South Africa and Canada have developed a novel vaccine that 
protects livestock from five deadly diseases in a single dose. Collaboration with 
regulatory bodies, agricultural ministries, professional associations, and vaccine producers will bring this much-needed innovation to farming families in South 
Africa, Kenya, and beyond. 
 Researchers from Canada have developed a natural compound known as hexanal 
to delay the ripening of mangoes and de crease spoilage. Spraying mangoes with 
hexanal earned farmers up to 15% more by allowing them to get more, better 
quality fruit to market later in the season. The researchers are partnering with institutions in India and Sri Lanka to further develop and commercialize technologies to extend the shelf-life of fruit.  
1.4  Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) 
14.  Since 2007, the RCMP has contributed to International Intellectual Property Crime Training 
Seminars hosted by Interpol each year. The seminars have been given to participants from 
developed and least developed countries, facilitating the exchange of best practices and 
techniques, and networking.   
15.  The RCMP and Health Canada are also me mbers of the Permanent Forum on International 
Pharmaceutical Crime (PFIPC).  The forum re-groups 17 developed countries and members from 
the private sector, allowing for the exchange of best practices, information on trends and enforcement initiatives and networking.   
16.   In June 2015, and for the seventh year in a row, the PFIPC and Interpol organized "Operation 
Pangea" (an International Week of Action) to ra ise public awareness of the risks of buying 
medicines on the internet. A total of 115 countries participated in Operation Pangea VIII which saw 
156 arrests worldwide and the seizure of US$81M worth of potentially dangerous medicines.  
17.  In March 2015, Canada, along with 19 other countries, including developing countries, took 
part in Operation Maya II, a 16 day operation that targeted illicit goods across the Americas and the Caribbean.  During that time, more than 2,00 0 intellectual property actions were taken and 
US$60M worth of goods were seized by the various police, customs and intellectual property units. 
2  OTHER CANADIAN INST ITUTIONS AND RESOURCES 
18.  Other Canadian institutions have also been involved in providing technical assistance to 
developing and least developed country Members. 
19.  For example, the Canada-based Centre for Trade Policy and Law (CTPL) is a Canadian 
institution that provides developing and transition economies with guidance and support to sustain them in the short-term and with the knowledge and tools to ensure their full participation in 
international trade agreements, including specific training on intellectual property law and policy 
issues.   
20.  Additionally, the University of Ottawa in Ca nada leads the Open African Innovation Research 
and Training (Open A.I.R.) Project, which aims to investigate how intellectual property regimes can 
be harnessed in Africa to facilitate innovation through collaboration – and to make processes more participatory, knowledge more accessible, and bene fits more widely shared. Open A.I.R. has also IP/C/W/610/Add.2 
 
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  received funding from Canada's International De velopment Research Centre (IDRC) and a seven-
year Partnership Grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) to help ensure that the Open AIR network further strengthens its position and is a sustainable, influential bridge of co-operation between the African continent and Canada. 
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