Makkah Governor to inaugurate First Arab Consumer and Brand Protection Forum on Monday

The inauguration of the three-day event at Jeddah Hilton Hotel will be in the presence of His Excellency the Secretary General of the Arab League Amr Moussa, Saudi Minister of Finance Dr. Ibrahim bin Abdulaziz Al Asaaf, Saudi Minister of Trade Mr. Abdullah Zainal, Saudi Minister of Culture and Information Mr. Iyad Madani, General Manager of the Saudi Customs Mr. Saleh Al-Khilawi; and counselor Ahmed Al-Hamdan Chairman of Hemaya Universal.

The Forum, the first of its kind in the Arab region, is being organized by Saudi Customs and Hemaya Universal in cooperation with both the Arab League and the Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Prince Khalid Al-Faisal is the patron of the Forum.

"The Forum is an extension of the Saudi government's efforts to protect consumers by combating commercial fraud and counterfeiting through legislation and regulations that help minimize the spread of fake and adulterated products,"

Mr. Al-Khilawi said in a press conference yesterday.

A total of 12 workshop sessions will be held during the Forum, starting October 19, he said.

Offering a platform for the public and private sectors concerned to exchange experiences and information, the Forum broadly aims to raise consumer awareness and unite efforts against the scourge of commercial fraud.

"Though the participation of public competent bodies, the Forum seeks to develop and activate regulations and laws to protect intellectual property rights and effectively combat fraudulent trade practices and counterfeiting," Mr. Al-Khilawi said.

"The emphasis will be on reviewing and updating the relevant regulations and laws for their effective application,"

he added.

The Forum's effort will extend to creating channels of communication with government agencies so as to streamline the flow of accurate information about dealers of counterfeit and fake products.

The objectives also include activating the activities of consumer protection groups, drawing up appropriate mechanisms to reduce the spread of counterfeiting and piracy, and benefiting from the experiences of developed countries in this regard.

"It's a unique opportunity for all the parties and experts concerned to discuss and unify visions for the formulation of effective strategies to fight commercial fraud and counterfeiting in the Arab world," the Customs Director said.

More than 40 speakers and 400 experts in the global fight against commercial fraud will participate in the Forum, said Ahmed Al-Hamdan, Chairman of Hemaya Universal, during the press conference.

"The regional and international bodies participating in the Forum include World Customs Organization, Intellectual Property Protection Unit at the European Union, the US Office for the Protection of Intellectual Property Rights and Patent, Gulf Standardization Organization, Saudi Specifications and Standards Organization, Saudi Consumer's Protection Society and Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Jeddah and Riyadh," said Al-Hamdan.

Scheduled on the first day (October 19) is the main workshop themed 'Capacity Building' workshop that includes four sub-workshops.

The first workshop titled 'Scope of the Global Challenge in Combating Trade in Counterfeits,'" to be conducted by Todd Reeves, from Office of Intellectual Property Policy and Enforcement, United States Patent and Trademark Office.

The second workshop will be titled "Building a Case for Criminal Prosecution in
Counterfeit Goods Cases ", for which the speaker is Mr. Mohamed Shaltout, Intellectual Property Specialist, U.S. Embassy Cairo.

The third workshop, titled " Collaboration between Customs Authorities & the Private Sector ", has MR. Mike Watson, Brand Protection Manager, CISCO, as speaker.

The fourth and final workshop is titled "Features of Development and Modernization of Customs in Saudi Arabia", with Mr. Rashid Abdullah and Mr. Ibrahim Moussa as the speakers.

This would be followed by a closed roundtable discussion chaired by Dr. Mohammed Al-Twijeri, Secretary General Assistant for Economic Affairs, Arab League, involving members of the Forum's Scientific Committee and competent bodies of the public sector.

The official opening of the Forum on Oct. 19th is scheduled to take place in the presence of high caliber guests after the closed-door debate.