on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union in the Assembly of the Lisbon Union

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

1.Subject matter of the proposal

This proposal concerns the decision establishing the position to be taken on the Union's behalf in the annual Assembly of the Lisbon Union of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), in particular in connection with the envisaged adoption of a decision on special contributions of the Contracting Parties pursuant to Article 24(2)(v) of the Geneva Act of the Lisbon Agreement on Appellations of Origin and Geographical Indications.

2.Context of the proposal

2.1.The Geneva Act of the Lisbon Agreement on Appellations of Origin and Geographical Indications

The Geneva Act of the Lisbon Agreement on Appellations of Origin and Geographical Indications of 2015 (‘the Agreement’) aims to offer comprehensive and effective international protection for the names of origin-based quality products. It updates and enhances the existing international registration system protecting names that identify the geographic origin of products: the Lisbon Agreement for the Protection of Appellations of Origin and their International Registration of 1958. The Agreement entered into force on 26 February 2020.

The European Union is a party to the Agreement.

2.2.The Assembly of the Lisbon Union

The Lisbon Union is a Special Union administrated by WIPO. It is composed of the Contracting Parties to the Geneva Act of the Lisbon Agreement on Appellations of Origin and Geographical Indications (the “Geneva Act”) and the States party to the Lisbon Agreement of 1958 for the Protection of Appellations of Origin and their International Registration or to the 1967 Act (the Lisbon Agreement as revised at Stockholm on July 14, 1967). The Assembly of the Lisbon Union meets annually in the context of the WIPO General Assembly. Its tasks are set out in Article 22 (2) of the Geneva Act. In particular, it has the following tasks: It deals with all matters concerning the maintenance and development of the Special Union and the implementation of the Geneva Act. It amends the Regulations establishing the details for carrying out the Geneva Act. It adopts the financial Regulations of the Special Union and amendments of the Articles of the Geneva Act on the Assembly of the Special Union (Article 22), the International Bureau of WIPO (Article 23), and on Finances (Article 24) as well as on the amendment procedure for these Articles (Article 27). Regarding finances more specifically, it may decide on whether and to which extent receipts from the sources of income of the Special Union do not suffice to cover the expenses, entailing the obligation of Contracting Parties to pay special contributions pursuant to Article 24 (2) (v) of the Geneva Act. The present Commission proposal only concerns decisions pursuant to Article 24 (2) (v) of the Geneva Act. The Assembly shall endeavour to take its decisions by consensus. Where a decision cannot be arrived at by consensus, the matter at issue shall be decided by voting. In such a case, each Contracting Party that is a State shall have one vote and shall vote only in its own name; and any Contracting Party that is an intergovernmental organization may vote, in place of its member States, with a number of votes equal to the number of its member States which are party to this Act. Article 4 paragraph 2 of Council Decision (EU) 2019/1754 of 7 October 2019 on the accession of the European Union to the Geneva Act stipulates that the Union shall vote in the Assembly of the Special Union and the Member States which have ratified or acceded to the Geneva Act shall not exercise their right to vote.

2.3.The envisaged act of the Assembly of the Lisbon Union

During its annual meetings in the framework of the WIPO General Assembly, the Assembly of the Lisbon Union may adopt decisions regarding the extent to which receipts from the sources of income of the Special Union do not suffice to cover the expenses, entailing the obligation of Contracting Parties to pay special contributions pursuant to Article 24 (2) (v) of the Geneva Act (‘the envisaged act’).

The purpose of the envisaged act is to constitute a basis for the payment of special contributions by the Contracting Parties of the Geneva Act to be able to cover the expenses of the Special Union.

The envisaged act will become binding on the parties in accordance with Article 24 (2) (v) of the Agreement, which provides: ‘(2) [Sources of Financing of the Budget] The income of the Special Union shall be derived from the following sources:[...] (v) special contributions of the Contracting Parties or any alternative source derived from the Contracting Parties or beneficiaries, or both, if and to the extent to which receipts from the sources indicated in items (i) to (iv) do not suffice to cover the expenses, as decided by the Assembly.’.

3.Position to be taken on the Union's behalf

The proposed position is to join a potential consensus on a decision of the Assembly of the Lisbon Union regarding the extent to which receipts from the sources of income indicated in items (i) to (iv) of Article 24 (2) of the Geneva Act do not suffice to cover the expenses. In that case, the income of the Lisbon Union shall be derived to that extent by special contributions of the Contracting Parties or any alternative source derived from the Contracting Parties or beneficiaries, or both.

The proposed Council decision would enable the EU, within the means available for that purpose from the annual budget of the Union, to join the consensus regarding a decision by the Assembly pursuant to Article 24 (2) (v) of the Geneva Act.

The EU budget for 2020 provides for 1 million € under budget line 05.06.01 as EU contribution to the functioning of the Lisbon Union in WIPO (the World Intellectual property Organisation) on the basis of the Geneva Act of the Lisbon Agreement on Appellations of Origin and Geographical Indications. The EU should be able to join a consensus on a decision of the Assembly of the Lisbon Union pursuant to Article 24 (2) (v) of the Geneva Act. Such a decision is needed for the Union to be able to make the payment in accordance with the basic act providing the legal basis for the implementation of the expenditure entered in the budget. This basic act provides as follows: “If the income from the Special Union is derived in accordance with point (v) of Article 24(2) of the Geneva Act, the Union may make a special contribution within the means available for that purpose from the annual budget of the Union.”

4.Legal basis

4.1.Procedural legal basis