Training in search, examination and IP information for NOIP and DOST staff, 28 November - 2 December 2005, Alicante

Vietnamese delegation at OHIM during the five-day training from 28 November – 2 December 2005. Seated, from left: Ulrika Rendel and Sharon Blackburn from OHIM, Kerstin Neumann, EPO, Dr Alberto Casado, OHIM, Nguyen Xuan Do, Head of Delegation, and Haldan Hoernell and Keri Rowles, EPO. Nguyen Thi Minh Thu, Administrative Assistant from the ECAP II office in Hanoi (standing, third from right), also attended.

A 25-person delegation from Vietnam’s National Office of Intellectual Property (NOIP) and the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) paid a study visit to OHIM in Alicante, Spain. The delegation attended training sessions on patents, trade marks, industrial designs, copyright and geographical indications. 

 The delegation was welcomed by Dr Alberto Casado, who gave a presentation on the latest developments in intellectual property rights in Europe. The panel of experts contributing to this seminar included Dr Casado himself, as well as Mark Kennedy from OHIM, Halldan Hoernell and Keri Rowles from the EPO, and Luis Berenguer, member of  OriGIn and representative of the Spanish GI Jijona and Turron from Alicante.

The delegation also paid a visit to the Regulatory Council of Jijona, which supervises the GI-protected products from this region of Spain, including the world-renowned Turron confectionery. Fredirico Moucumil Gallo, the Council’s Secretary-General, gave an overview of the Council’s functions to the Vietnamese delegates. The Council is responsible for controlling production and supervising the quality of products of this region. Nearly 60% of the Council’s budget originates from the financial support of local producers, while the remaining 40% is subsidised by the government. The delegation also visited the Lobo factory, where Turron confectionery is produced. Export manager Juan Jose explained the production process, for which raw materials are carefully chosen from specific regions. The delegates saw the whole production line at the factory, including the labelling process, which gave them an overview of the production process for a GI product.