On March 30th, SIPO Commissioner Shen Changyu led a delegation to visit the Cambodian Ministry of Commerce and the National Committee for Intellectual Property Rights (NCIPR) and held talks with Ok Boung, the acting Minister of Commerce and Secretary of State of Cambodia. The two sides briefed each other on their latest intellectual property (IP) development, reviewed their cooperation process since the two sides signed a MoU on cooperation, and reached consensus on further promoting in-depth cooperation. Ouk Prachea, Cambodian Deputy Minister of Commerce and Secretary of State, attended the talks.

Shen Changyu pointed out that China and Cambodia are dear brothers and close friends. They've been sharing mutual trust and support for years and enjoy a deep traditional friendship. In terms of IP, SIPO, the Cambodian Ministry of Commerce, and the NCIPR signed IP cooperation MoU, following which there have been effective cooperation in fields such as high-level visits, personnel training, information and data exchange. Based on such good cooperation, the two sides have made new breakthroughs in patent examination cooperation. Through the MoU on IP cooperation signed by SIPO and Cambodian Ministry of Industry and Handicrafts in September 2017, China's valid invention patents are allowed to get registered and take effect in Cambodia. On March 29th, the first batch of 20 pieces of Chinese patents have finished registration and taken effect in Cambodia. This not only is an important measure for the two sides to implement the Belt and Road Initiative in the IP field, but also enriches the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Cambodia. This monumental cooperation outcome comes from the two sides' intensive efforts in IP over the past years. It couldn't do without the strong support of the Cambodian Ministry of Commerce and the NCIPR. SIPO will continue to maintain close contacts with them and promote China-Cambodia IP cooperation development.

Ok Boung said that for a long time, China has been Cambodia's biggest trading partner and biggest source of foreign investment. Cambodia attaches great importance to its cooperation and exchanges in science and technology, investment, and economy and trade with China, among other fields. In terms of IP, as the chair of the NCIPR, the Cambodian Ministry of Commerce has been maintaining a longstanding friendly cooperative relationship with SIPO, with cooperation highlights coming one after another recently. The launch of China's valid invention patents getting registered and taking effect in Cambodia is an inspiring cooperation outcome. Cambodia will work with China to further enhance exchanges and cooperation under the existing cooperation framework and jointly push forward their economic and trade development and technological progress.

The Cambodian Ministry of Commerce is the authority formulating and coordinating Cambodian IP policy and regulations. Specifically, it is in charge of trademarks, business names, and the registration and examination of geographical indications. In 1999, Cambodia established the NCIPR to coordinate IP development nationwide. The Cambodian Ministry of Commerce is its chair and the location of its standing secretariat. (Translated from SIPO Website Chinese Version)