The 61st Series of Meetings of the Assemblies of the Member States of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is taking place from 21 to 25 September 2020. Under the conditions generated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the current edition of the Assemblies is organized in a hybrid format with physical and remote participation of delegations, via the Interprefy platform specially created to provide the opportunity to attend the sessions of the WIPO Assemblies, all representatives of the Member States, including in conditions restricting mobility.

This year’s edition is attended by representatives from over 190 WIPO Member States, most of whom have a virtual presence at the Assemblies. The delegation of the Republic of Moldova includes Tatiana Molcean, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Moldova to the UN Office in Geneva and other International Organizations based in Geneva, Iulian Grigorita, Deputy Permanent Representative, who physically attends the Assemblies, and Viorel Iustin, Director General of the State Agency on Intellectual Property (AGEPI) and Liliana Vieru, Head of Communication and International Relations Department of AGEPI, who are present via the Interprefy virtual platform.

During the current session, decisions will be addressed and taken on pressing issues of the organization that cannot be postponed. Among these are the topics related to the operation of WIPO in pandemic conditions, personnel and security issues, planning of WIPO Committees and Unions activity, and also examination of audit, financial reports, etc.

The 61st Series of Meetings of the Assemblies of the Member States of the World Intellectual Property Organization was opened by the President of the General Assembly, Ambassador Omar Zniber, Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Morocco to the UN Office and other International Organizations based in Geneva, who thanked all those involved in the organization of the current series of meetings of the WIPO Assemblies in the current exceptional circumstances and expressed his commitment to contribute to the successful completion of the meetings.

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Director General Francis Gurry, who is at the end of his second term, in his speech reviewed the Organization’s progress during the 12 years he was in charge of WIPO.

The newly appointed Director General Daren Tang, who will take over the leadership of the Organization on 1 October this year, thanked the Member States for their trust and assured his full dedication to the Organization’s objectives. Daren Tang expressed his high appreciation to his predecessor for his significant contribution to building a prosperous organization.

In line with the agenda of the meeting, Member States presented country statements mentioning WIPO’s contribution to the development of the intellectual property system, including the statement of the Director General Francis Gurry, whom they applauded for the way the organization was run.

The Delegation of the Republic of Moldova aligned itself with the statement of the Central European and Baltic States Regional Group, of which it is a part, positively appreciating the activity carried out by the WIPO Secretariat and the Member States to ensure the organization of Assemblies in pandemic conditions.

In her country statement, Ambassador Tatiana Molcean mentioned the efforts made by the Government of Chisinau to ensure control over the spread of COVID 19 and stabilize the economy by implementing mechanisms that will contribute to solving the current crisis and facilitating the access of users of the intellectual property system to high-quality services.

In conclusion, the delegation of the Republic of Moldova thanked the Director General Francis Gurry for the way he led WIPO during his 12 years of mandate, as well as for his personal contribution to the development of culture and respect for intellectual property in the Republic of Moldova.