The two-day long Colombo sessions (called as Sub-Regional Sessions), are a joint effort by World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the National Intellectual Property Office (NIPO) under the Ministry of Industry and Commerce. The sessions will start with a high-level workshop for policy makers titled “Empowering Creativity for Sustainable Development and the Role of Copyright”. WIPO has given such importance to Colombo event that no less than Ms Gao Hang -the Director-Copyright Development Division of WIPO - is now in town to join the Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiudeen and many other IP experts from India, UK, Tokyo, and Sri Lanka to move forward the deliberations.

Representing Sri Lankan IP expertise are Chairman of Intellectual Property Advisory Commission Dr. J.M. Swaminathan and Former Chairperson of Intellectual Property Advisory Commission Ms Suganthie Kadirgamar. Also a notable presenter is Mr Satoshi Watanabe -Chair of Asia-Pacific Regional Committee-International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC) & Senior Administrator-Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers (JASRAC)-Tokyo.

The theme of this year’s WIPD is “Women in Innovation and Creativity”. Today’s Colombo sessions are part of over 230 worldwide events to celebrate yet another WIPD-an annual event that has been commemorated since 2000.During the sessions, WIPO is to support NIPO to finalize its National IP Action Plan a milestone in Sri Lankan IP.