Senate committee approves geographical indicators bill

Sends the bill to parliament which is aimed at promoting, protecting exports

ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Commerce and Textile, after a thorough review, unanimously passed the Geographical Indicators (Registration and Protection) Bill along with some amendments and sent it to the lower house of parliament.

The Senate committee took the decision in a meeting on Tuesday, where it was briefed about the purpose and aim of the bill and its various clauses.

With the passage of Geographical Indicators (Registration and Protection) Bill, exports of Pakistan would increase significantly with improvement in manufacturing, agriculture and other sectors, remarked Committee Chairman Senator Mirza Mohammad Afridi.

He pointed out that the standing committee had reviewed the bill in detail in the last meeting but the law had been delayed for a long time.

Briefing the committee, the Intellectual Property Organisation (IPO) chairman stressed that the bill would facilitate registration, management and protection of procedures, intellectual property rights and consumer products with geographical indicators.

The bill would encourage the use of traditional knowledge and creative skills of rural areas, ensure employment opportunities and facilitate all local stakeholders, he said.

The bill will also address the problem of rural migration in order to maintain the production cycle as well as keep a network of standard products. The bill will support trade and business environment and will help increase the country’s exports significantly.

The committee was told that the bill was important in the international trade laws and for protection of the country’s products through legislation.

India passed such a law in 1989 while Pakistan managed to do the same only in 2005. The committee was informed that 121 countries had adopted the law while amendments to the law were reflective of the public sentiment.

There was obviously a need to update the copyright law, dating back to 1962, for which a new draft was being prepared, the committee was informed.

Senators Khushbakht Shujaat and Imamuddin Shouqeen voiced concern over the ineffective role played by the commercial attachés posted in Pakistani embassies across the world for the promotion of exports.

Senator Dilawar Khan suggested that a sub-committee should be formed to evaluate the performance of personnel deployed at the embassies. The standing committee will discuss the matter in the next meeting.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 29^th, 2020.

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