On February 27, 2017, the thirty-third session of the WIPO Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore was opened.

The Committee’s aim is to closer the WIPO member states representatives positions and reaching final conclusion on the text of international agreement which will ensure the effective protection of traditional cultural expressions (TCEs).

The Traditional Cultural Expression (TCE) Committee has restarted since its last discussion on April, 2014. It is noteworthy that the delegation of Georgia is participating for the first time in the work of the Committee, in the capacity of the current Central European and Baltic States Group (CEBS) coordinator for the year 2017.

The special representative of Georgia Mrs. Ana Gobechia addressed the session on behalf of the CEBS Group for the first time and spoke about the importance of the future work of the Committee. She also stressed the necessity to carry out the work of the Committee in an efficient manner in order to ensure the successful accomplishment of the challenging tasks ahead.

The Committee will finalize its work on March 3, 2017