The working visit of European experts within the Twinning Project “Support to Implementation and Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights in the Republic of Moldova takes place in Chisinau between March 20 to 26 this year, Mr. Dariusz Goszczynski, Deputy Director, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Poland, and Elena Balan, inspector at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Romania, in order to familiarize with the current system of protection of geographical indications (GIs), appellations of origin (AO) and traditional specialty guaranteed (TSG) in the Republic of Moldova.

The visit program includes a series of meetings with specialists from the State Agency on Intellectual Property (AGEPI), Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry (MAFI), Main State Inspectorate for Market Supervision, Metrology and Consumer Protection, Winemaking and Food Technologies Centre of the Scientific-Practical Institute of Horticulture and Food Technologies, State Inspectorate for Supervision of Alcoholic Production. European experts were informed regarding the role and place of public authorities and other institutions of the Republic of Moldova responsible for registration and protection of GIs, AO and TSG in the current system of protection, and their needs for strengthening the institutional capacities in the field.

During this mission, Mr. Dariusz Goszczynski and Mrs. Elena Balan have met with experts of the European Union Mission of counseling in public policy for the Republic of Moldova, Mr. Waldemar Sochaczewski and Mr. Richard Moody, MAIA advisers, as well as representatives of USAID Project Competitiveness Enhancement and Enterprise Development II (CEED II) Mr. Douglas Griffith, director, and Mrs. Diana Lazar, manager of winemaking industry, during which they discussed various aspects of registration and protection of GIs, AO and TSG in the Republic of Moldova.

A round table with participation of EU experts, representatives of AGEPI, Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Regional Development and Constructions, other institutions with responsibilities in the field of protection of GI, AO and TSG took place on 23 March this year in the premises of AGEPI.

Following this visit to Chisinau, EU experts will assist Republic of Moldova in evaluating the current state of protection of GIs, AO and TSG in the Republic of Moldova, identifying system deficiencies and will submit proposals and recommendations to strengthening and compliance of this system with the European standards in the field.