Qatar, WIPO – Extended Partnership, Close Cooperation /report/

Over the past few years, the State of Qatar's partnership with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) has witnessed significant development in the fields of education, culture, judicial aspects, and alternative means of resolving disputes in the field of intellectual property. It also witnessed development in cooperation in the sports sector, in order to link sports with intellectual property, and benefit from the legacy of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. The partnership with WIPO also included contributing to the preparation of the draft national strategy for intellectual property, which seeks to coordinate the state's policies related to intellectual property, in accordance with Qatar's national vision, as well as to evaluate the institutional framework for intellectual property in Qatar. The most important memoranda of understanding signed between the State of Qatar and WIPO include: a memorandum of understanding (MoU) regarding small and medium-sized enterprises in Qatar with the aim of ena bling them to improve the use of intellectual property in their business strategies, an MoU between the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) and WIPO which aims to contribute to the development of human resources in the field of intellectual property in their business strategies through teaching and developing practical skills with the participation of WIPO experts, and an MoU between the Minsitry of Commerce and Industry and WIPO regarding alternative means of settling disputes in the field of intellectual property. Accelerating the State of Qatar's accession to these WIPO memoranda of understanding will update the legal framework related to intellectual property in order to provide an appropriate environment for attracting investment in sectors related to the knowledge economy and enhancing confidence and legal certainty in the Qatari intellectual property system. In the field of sports, which is a fundamental pillar of Qatar National Vision 2030, the State of Qatar seeks to enhance cooperation with WIPO on intellectual property and sports, as the strategic management of intellectual property rights is present at the heart of all major sports events, as was the case with the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, as the legacy of the World Cup will always be beneficial in terms of consolidating the relationship between intellectual property and sports in general. In 2024, the International Mediation and Arbitration Conference was organized for the first time in the State of Qatar, in cooperation between the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and WIPO. This conference is the first of its kind in partnership with WIPO in the region, and it aims to provide a platform for the exchange of expertise, knowledge and cooperation among specialists concerned with intellectual property rights, mediation, arbitration and foreign direct investment in the Middle East region. A second edition of the International Mediation and Arbitration Conference will be organized in 2025 at the level of the Gulf Coo epration Council (GGC) countries, in line with the needs and emerging challenges in the region, and keeping pace with global developments in the field of mediation and arbitration of intellectual property. In terms of activities and negotiations within WIPO committees, the State of Qatar participated in the Diplomatic Conference on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Traditional Knowledge, which was held at the organization's headquarters during the period of May 13-24, 2024. Source: Qatar News Agency