Speeches 2007

Regional Intellectual Property Rights Conference 

VENUE: Movenpick Hotel, Dar es Salaam

Thursday, October 11, 2007

Remarks by Ambassador Mark Green (as prepared)

I was pleased to receive an invitation to provide the closing remarks for this conference. I would like to congratulate you for making this meeting a success by engaging in a frank dialogue that will serve as an important next step in reaching our shared objective of protecting intellectual property rights and combating counterfeit goods. My sense is there has been enthusiastic participation the past couple of days. I would especially like to thank the Fair Competition Commission of the Government of Tanzania and the American Chamber of Commerce of Kenya for the time and effort put into organizing this conference. I would also applaud the representatives of the private sector for traveling here to discuss this important topic.

We have come together here in Dar es Salaam, because we have the shared belief and concern that intellectual property rights are everyone’s responsibility—and that responsibility does not stop at the border. Protecting intellectual property rights benefits society at every level and is both a regional and global issue. I am pleased the press has joined us because I would like for them to help explain to the general public what it is we mean when we use the term “intellectual property rights”. Intellectual property rights refer to intangible goods that nonetheless hold value. Examples include: computer programs, technology, music, films, novels, architecture, recipes, and trade secrets.

The goal of intellectual property protection is to consider and treat it with the same respect as we treat personal or real property. Creators may grant the rights to buy, sell, license, and transfer intellectual property. Creativity has the right to be protected as much as our houses, cars or other personal belongings do.

In a world where ideas form the common currency, the piracy of intellectual property may easily erode a country’s economy and its cultural identity. Patent laws encourage the discovery of new and improved products and processes, while ensuring the freest possible public access to information regarding those new products and processes.

Copyright laws encourage the creation of literary works, computer programs, artistic works, and expressions of national culture. UNESCO recently hosted a copyright workshop for Tanzanian artists and musicians that was an eye-opener for local talent. Rather than just enjoy the popularity that comes from hearing one's song on the radio, musicians learned that their work could be extremely profitable if it is correctly copyrighted and protected.

Trademark laws encourage the development and maintenance of high-quality products and services, and help companies promote customer loyalty. If trademarks were not protected, the consumer could not be sure if the football boots he is wearing were truly created and marketed by his favorite sports star, if the bottled water one is drinking was in fact pure or if the medicine a parent gives a child was legitimately made by the company identified on the label.

The market places value on all these types of intellectual property--value that must be protected. Failure to protect intellectual property seriously stifles innovation and creativity and hampers economic growth and investment. In the case of pharmaceuticals or food, lack of intellectual property protection could result in harm, or worse.

Weak intellectual property rights protection makes it nearly impossible for artists, inventors, and creators to have rights over the use of their creations. Protecting intellectual property rights encourages people, whether they are tinga tinga painters or bongo flava stars, in any country to continue to create and to pursue new ideas and directions.

Throughout the world, artists are coming to understand the importance of protecting their works. Hong Kong filmmakers who were suffering economic losses due to pirated films effectively lobbied the authorities to take action to protect their craft. Since 2004, several groups of artists have tried to press for more intellectual property protections, including Ethiopian musicians and Bangladeshi film makers.

I cringe each time I pull up to a duka and I am bombarded with pirated dvds--some for movies that just premiered that same weekend. Rather than lecture these hawkers on the ills of their fake goods, I shake my head no and walk away. I encourage you all and the Tanzanian public at large to do the same.

Those who infringe upon intellectual property rights have no incentive to meet standards or ensure the quality of their products. In the worst case scenario, counterfeit products can be deadly. In Niger in 1995, more than 2,500 people died when they were inoculated with counterfeit meningitis vaccines.

In the United States in early 2004, a man pled guilty to selling counterfeit pesticides needed to control mosquitoes in a false effort to prevent the spread of the West Nile virus. And in May 2004, Chinese authorities attributed the deaths of dozens of children to fake infant formula.

Studies consistently show a correlation between intellectual property rights protection and economic growth. Approximately 70% of global economic output is generated by services, many of which depend heavily on technology and other innovations that are categorized as intellectual property. The World Bank’s Global Economic Prospects Report of 2002 reported that “across the range of income levels, intellectual property rights are associated with greater trade and foreign direct investment flows, which in turn translate into faster rates of economic growth.” That correlation is something that Tanzania and her neighbors throughout the region can exploit to gain an advantage in attracting foreign direct investment.

Everyone has a stake in protecting intellectual property rights—the creator has a right to reap the financial benefits of his inventions; the consumer deserves to know that the product she is buying or what her children are ingesting is genuine; and companies need the stability in their operations in order to justify their investments. Governments too lose enormous revenue from not being able to collect appropriate taxes from legitimate market players who lose market share by counterfeiters selling their goods on the black market.

The way forward to protect Intellectual Property Rights includes educating the public on how counterfeit goods negatively impact everyone. We need to strengthen laws and penalties so companies can plan for and adjust to new technologies and innovations. Editorials, such as the one written by Director General Mkocha last month, are an excellent way to dispel some common myths. Mr. Mkocha made crystal clear the important distinction between inexpensive but legal items that respect intellectual property rights safeguards versus cheap, unregulated, counterfeit items--and the danger associated with counterfeit goods. We need to continue to engage the press and to explore new avenues for disseminating clear and accurate information to the public.

In that same spirit, we are excited to see how Tanzania’s current counterfeits law will be reviewed by Parliament in the upcoming November session. As we work together, through bilateral and multilateral frameworks, let’s take steps to develop new ways to protect intellectual property rights and combat counterfeit goods. Protecting intellectual property is another opportunity to cooperate in preserving our artistic and cultural works and to ensure sustainable economic growth. To conclude, I acknowledge that conferences such as this one are great catalysts for discussion that centers not only on common issues we face regarding intellectual property rights and counterfeit goods, but more importantly, it allows us the opportunity to discuss how we may work together to overcome those challenges.

This is an historic time in U.S.-Tanzanian relations. With the recent Board approval of the Millennium Challenge Compact, the United States and the United Republic of Tanzania are entering into a new stage in our bilateral relationship. We have together pledged to work as close partners to create sustainable economic development and to make Tanzania more attractive for investors. Providing adequate protection of intellectual property rights is a major factor leading toward that common goal.

Again, I want to thank you for your attendance at this conference. I firmly believe it is critical to meet in person to discuss and coordinate our approaches to finding common solutions to this issue. I only recently arrived a little more than a month ago. But I pledge to the business community here and to the Tanzanian Government that throughout my tenure as the representative of the American people, I will work closely with all of you as we address and overcome the issue of counterfeiting and ensure we properly protect intellectual property.

Asanteni sana.