Nomination of Japanese Candidate for the Post of Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

February 5, 2008

 The Japanese Government will shortly submit to the WIPO Secretariat its candidacy for the post of the Director General, Mr. Yoshiyuki Takagi, currently WIPO Executive Director.

  1. The Japanese Government will shortly submit to the WIPO Secretariat its candidacy for the post of the Director General, Mr. Yoshiyuki Takagi**, currently WIPO Executive Director.
  2. The WIPO Coordination Committee* to be held on May 13 and 14 will recommend a nominee, and the WIPO General Assembly to be held at the end of September will appoint the new DG.

    * The Coordination Committee is comprised of 83 out of 184 WIPO Member States.

    ** Activities of the WIPO Secretariat and Mr. Yoshiyuki Takagi

     The WIPO Secretariat is engaged in developing Intellectual Property (IP) - related rules (e.g. harmonization of IP), receiving international applications, publishing official gazettes, and promoting cooperation in the field of IP for developing countries and countries in transition to the market economy, thereby performing extremely important roles as a UN specialized agency dealing with IP-related global issues.

     Mr. Takagi, the candidate from Japan, has been working for WIPO for a total of 15 years.  His contributions to WIPO and its Member States initiated and strengthened a wide range of activities, policy matters and strategy based on his professional knowledge and diplomatic skills with regard to intellectual property policy making that he had obtained in his 6 years of patent examination, 7 years of intellectual property diplomacy, 7 years as the Secretariat of WIPO Committees for the modernization of intellectual property institutions in developing countries, and 10 years as the strategist of WIPO’s all Programs.

     With such knowledge and experience, Mr. Takagi is highly expected to contribute to transforming WIPO into a proactive and dynamic leader of intellectual property.

    [Curriculum Vitae of Mr. Yoshiyuki Takagi]

    • Born in 1955
    • Graduated from Kyoto University, Faculty of Engineering, in 1978
    • Entered the Japan Patent Office in 1979, as Examiner
    • WIPO program and legal officer (from 1986 to 1988)
    • Delegate of Japan for the negotiation of TRIPS Agreement (from 1988 to 1991)
    • First Secretary at the Permanent Mission of Japan in Geneva (1991~1994)
    • Joined WIPO as Director, Industrial Property Information Division in 1994
    • WIPO Executive Director from 2003 to the present date
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