1. Dates and Venue

July 8 (Tuesday) - July 17 (Thursday),
2025 WIPO Headquarters, Geneva, Switzerland

*Implemented in a hybrid format.

2. Participating Countries and Organizations

WIPO member states, intergovernmental organizations (IGOs), non-governmental organizations (NGOs), etc.

3. Results summary

A delegation from the Japan Patent Office, led by Commissioner Kasai and Deputy Patent Engineer Yasuda, physically participated in the 66th WIPO General Assembly held in Geneva, Switzerland.

The WIPO General Assembly is a collection of treaty assemblies administered by WIPO, and at this General Assembly, general speeches were given by each member state (Japan's was delivered by Commissioner Kasai), the proposed WIPO Programme Budget for 2026/27, activity reports from each committee, amendments to the Madrid System rules, support for Ukraine, and other topics were discussed. *1

The results of the main topics discussed are as follows: *2

(1) General Speech

Speeches were given by regional group coordinators, associations such as ASEAN and the EU, member states, and observers. Japan (Commissioner-General Kasai) *3 welcomed WIPO's efforts to support SMEs, start-ups, and entrepreneurs, such as the Global Entrepreneur Empowerment Program (GEEP) and the IP Management Clinic (IPMC), and stated that the Japan Patent Office (JPO) has agreed to strengthen cooperation with WIPO to support SMEs in developing countries, and will continue to cooperate in global efforts.

Furthermore, the JPO acknowledges the impact of cutting-edge technologies, including AI, on the intellectual property system, and stated that it will actively participate in discussions in this area at WIPO.

He also mentioned that intellectual property plays an important role in resolving social issues, such as climate change and achieving the SDGs. He also stated that the JPO is expanding its efforts, including through cooperation with the Japan Fund, such as WIPO GREEN, and that it will hold an international forum at the Osaka-Kansai Expo to promote the idea of utilizing intellectual property to resolve social issues.

(2) WIPO Planning and Budget Committee (PBC)

This year marks the year in which WIPO's biennial budget is compiled. At the 38th and 39th PBC meetings held in May and June 2025, discussions were held on the proposed budget for fiscal year 2026/27. However, agreement could not be reached among member states on some proposed budget items, and it was decided that the matter would be discussed again at the WIPO General Assembly.

At this General Assembly, intensive discussions were held on the above-mentioned items on which agreement had not been reached, and as a result, the proposed budget for fiscal year 2026/27 was approved with some amendments made.

(3) Committee on Development and Intellectual Property (CDIP)

The WIPO Secretariat presented the Chair's Summary of the CDIP meetings held over the past year (December 2024 and May 2025) and the Director General's Report on the implementation of the Development Agenda.

Japan introduced examples of WIPO GREEN support in Latin America, Asia, Africa and other regions as part of its efforts through the WIPO Japan Fund, and explained that the JPO recognizes the importance of efforts to support developing countries through WIPO and is actively contributing to these efforts through the Japan Fund.

(4) Report of the Diplomatic Conference to Finalize and Adopt the Design Law Treaty (DLT)

It was decided that a diplomatic conference on this issue would be held at the 63rd Assembly of WIPO Member States in 2022. In this regard, the WIPO Secretariat reported that the diplomatic conference was held in November 2024, and that as a result, the Riyadh Design Law Treaty was adopted.

(5) Revision of Madrid System Rules and Other Agenda Items

The amendments to the Rules agreed upon at the 22nd Madrid Working Group were approved. Other matters discussed at this session included a report on WIPO's assistance to Ukraine, a report on audit and oversight matters, a report on WIPO staff matters, the composition of the WIPO Coordination Committee and other committees, and reports from various other committees.

Source: https://www.jpo.go.jp//news/kokusai/wipo/wipo2025.html