H.E Ahmed Butti Ahmed, Executive Chairman of Ports, Customs and Free Zone and Director General of Dubai Customs, headed the Department’s delegation that took part in the Third Arab Forum on Anti-Commercial Fraud, Counterfeiting and Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Protection, which concluded today in the Saudi capital, Riyadh.
The delegation comprised of Mr Yousef Al Khaj, Director of IPR Department at Dubai Customs, and a number of officials at the Department. The three-day forum was organized by the Saudi Customs with participation of WCO, WIPO and the Arab League . It witnessed discussions of IPR-related issues and combating counterfeiting.
Dubai Customs enriched these discussions by showcasing its pioneering experience in IPR protection and its achievements in this field, namely establishing a database of registered trademarks in the UAE through the Electronic Trademark Recording System, as well as a database of IPR cases, which boosted efforts in combating counterfeiting and commercial fraud. Dubai Customs made 750 seizures of IPR infringing goods between 2011 and 2012, with a value exceeding AED 50 million of seized goods, including accessories, electronics, mobile phones, clothes, watches, cigarettes and others.
H.E Ahmed Butti Ahmed said :” Dubai customs firmly believes in the rights of producers, creators and intellectuals whether in respect to industrial, commercial or literary areas. Dubai Customs has long taken the issue of IPR seriously. Stringent measures for encountering counterfeited and fake products including all items that are detrimental to public health, local community and UAE society or undermining producers and brand owners’ rights had been taken. The aim of such measures is to maintain the legitimacy of international trade as well since Dubai is deemed to be a core hub linking both Eastern and Western parts of the world “.
Mr Butti affirmed that innovation, preserving it, inciting it and protecting it are vital to the advancement of all life aspects. For that reason, Dubai Customs saves no efforts towards maintaining producers and brand owners’ rights by cooperating with all strategic partners in the private and public sectors; locally and internationally to perform this task. Such efforts are in line with Dubai Customs’ slogan in the field of protecting intellectual property; “Together for a better protection”.
The Third Arab Forum on Anti-Commercial Fraud, Counterfeiting and Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Protection underlined international efforts in this field and diagnosed the dimensions of the phenomenon and means to encounter it. As a conclusion, a study of integrated encountering strategies was carried out that highlighted the importance of partnership between the private and public sectors, exchanging information and connecting databases of various bodies to track counterfeiting and fraud of all aspects. Moreover, the Saudi Customs showcased its experience in IPR protection.
It is worth mentioning that Dubai Customs hosted the Fourth Global Congress on Combating Counterfeiting and Piracy in 2008 with participation of more than 500 senior decision-makers from 70 countries who convened in Dubai to identify solutions to the escalating global problem of product counterfeiting and piracy of intellectual property and to put an end to the damaging effects it is having on consumer health and safety, government resources and revenues, innovation and foreign investment. During the event, the Dubai Declaration was issued which called for imposing more stringent punishments against those involved in trademark infringements of all forms.
The IPR Department at Dubai Customs is gearing up to celebrate the World IP Day on April 26. The Department has intensified its efforts to promote awareness of combating piracy, counterfeiting and commercial fraud by organizing seminars, lectures and workshops for all society segments, with cooperation of various economic, security, media and educational corporations.
Dubai Customs is keen on involving the private sector in its IPR protection efforts by joining hands with businesses in combating trademark counterfeiting at all customs entry points in Dubai. Inspectors at customs centers implement latest trademark infringement seizure techniques, benefiting of their accumulated expertise in this field.