Sri Lanka to amend Intellectual Property Act

The Cabinet has cleared a draft bill to amend Intellectual Property Act No. 36 of 2003, which would allow the National Intellectual Property Office (NIPO) to register geographical indications (GI) on products that have specific geographical origins to the country.

After securing the clearance from the Attorney General, Trade Minister Bandula Gunawardena this week tabled the draft bill for the approval of the Cabinet of Ministers. The bill will be published in the government gazette and subsequently submitted to Parliament for approval.

On October 12, 2020, the Cabinet of Ministers granted approval to amend Intellectual Property Act No. 36 of 2003, in order to allow the NIPO to register the GIs on products.

Sri Lanka has been pushing for the GI for Ceylon Tea and Ceylon Cinnamon. Recently, Sri Lanka secured a one million euro (over Rs.230 million) grant as technical assistance from the French Development Agency (AFD) on behalf of the Government of France to facilitate the process of registering the GI for Ceylon Tea varieties.

In addition to Ceylon Tea and Cinnamon, Co-Cabinet Spokesperson and Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila noted that Sri Lanka could also register the GIs for other agricultural products such as Kalutara mangosteen as well as certain handicraft products.  The GIs are most often used for agricultural products, foodstuffs, wine and spirit drinks, handicrafts and industrial products.