With the advent of the 23rd World Intellectual Property Day, Shen Changyu, Commissioner of the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) held a bilateral conversation with the visiting World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Director General Daren Tang on April 25.

Shen started by thanking the WIPO for supporting China's IP undertakings in the past 50 years, warmly welcomed Tang to visit China on the occasion of CNIPA-WIPO 50th anniversary of cooperation and updated on the latest developments of the Chinese IP work. He said that the Chinese government always stresses the importance of IP work. President Xi Jinping has made important instructions as well as a series of major plans many times. The Report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) emphasizes that innovation will remain at the heart of China's modernization drive and we will strengthen legal protection of intellectual property rights, in order to establish a foundational system for all-around innovation. The plan on reforming the institutions of the State Council this year has overhauled the management mechanism for IPR by adjusting the CNIPA into an institution directly under the State Council while proposing accelerating the building of an IP powerhouse country and upgrading IPR creation, application, protection, administration and service.

Shen also said that the WIPO and the CNIPA have been important partners. The two sides have been maintaining profound friendship and close cooperation for many years with prolific results in implementing the United Nations Agenda for Sustainable Development, promoting the formulation of more impartial and reasonable international rules for IPR, jointly supporting the IP capacity building of the developing countries, enhancing public awareness of IPR and other aspects. Supporting the WIPO as the main platform for formulating international rules, the CNIPA has been advocating the WIPO's greater role in multilateral system building and global innovation inspiration, and will always participate in IP multilateral affairs under the framework of WIPO, jointly boost the construction of an inclusive global IP ecosystem and promote IP international cooperation and innovative development  to better serve the well-being of human kind.

Tang appreciated the CNIPA's support to the WIPO for all these years. He said that the 50-year cooperation between the WIPO and CNIPA has witnessed the constant development of China's IP undertakings. China has made palpable achievements in IP and become a major IP country and a global innovation leader. The Chinese government gives high priority to IP protection as part of its focus on economic development, setting a role model for the rest of the world. The WIPO is looking forward to China's ongoing participation in works under the framework of WIPO and more contributions to cope with global challenges together. The WIPO is willing to deepen cooperation with China to achieve more practical results.

The two sides also shared wisdom on topics like strategic linkage, preparatory work for the celebratory activities for CNIPA-WIPO 50th anniversary of cooperation and cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative, as well as the formulation and improvement of international IP rules.

CNIPA Deputy Commissioner Lu Pengqi and WIPO Deputy Director General Wang Binying also attended the meeting.