Why the World IP Day is Celebrated

The reason behind we celebrates 26th April as World IP day is because on this day, in 1970 WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization) Convention came into force and in the year 2000 WIPO member states designated 26th April as World IP day. Since then the World IP day is observed annually on the 26th of April.

At first instance, the designation of a particular day as World IP day was proposed by the Director General of the National Algerian Institute of Industrial Property in a statement made by him in 33rd Assemblies of the Member States of WIPO, held in Geneva in September 1998. Thereafter he requested the Director General of WIPO in a letter dated 7th April 1999 to seclude the agenda of “institutionalization of an International Day for Intellectual Property “in the next secession of the Assemblies of Member States of WIPO. With the objective to “set up a framework for broader mobilization and awareness, to open up access to the promotional aspect of innovation and to recognize the achievements of promoters of intellectual property throughout the world.”

Later, the Commissioner of the State Intellectual Property Office of the People's Republic of China proposed the establishment of 26th April as “World Intellectual Property Day” in a letter addressed to the Director General of WIPO.

Finally the General Assembly of WIPO “approved the idea of declaring a particular day as a World Intellectual Property Day” in October, 1999 with the objective “to highlight the role and contribution of intellectual property in the economic, cultural and social development of all countries as well as to raise public awareness and understanding in this field of human endeavour.”

The First World IP day was celebrated on 26th April 2001 with the theme of Creating the Future Today and this year in 2019 the theme is Reach for Gold: IP and Sports

Image from here