ENFORCEMENT

Office of the Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator
B. ENHANCE CAPACITY-BUILDING, OUTREACH,
AND TRAINING PROGRAMS ON INTELLECTUAL
PROPERTY ENFORCEMENT IN OTHER COUNTRIES.
As described in more detail in the opening pages of this
Strategic Plan, illicit IP-based activities stretch across the
globe and are not confined within national boundaries.
For example, traffickers of counterfeit goods may
manufacture fakes in one country, exploit another country
for purposes of transiting and re-labeling the counterfeit
goods, and target numerous other countries as markets
for consumption. Actions that unlawfully exploit
copyrighted content or patents, or misappropriate trade
secrets, often have an international footprint as well.
The global nature of these and other IP-based illicit
activities necessitates an IPR strategy that involves
enhanced international collaboration, including
supporting the capabilities of other governments to
engage in effective IP enforcement.
For the reasons outlined in this Strategic Plan,
the adequate and effective protection of intellectual
property rights is an important priority in U.S. economic
foreign policy. Transparent and effective intellectual
property systems provide stable expectations that
facilitate foreign direct investment and trade in the kinds
of products and services that result in voluntary transfer
of technology and skills. The United States Government
is continuously working with foreign countries, as
appropriate, to address specific deficiencies or embrace
best practices in intellectual property protection. This
engagement ranges from formal economic dialogues
to collaboration in multilateral organizations to bilateral
work through our Embassies and foreign commercial
services officers or Department attaches all over the
world. Different countries face different challenges
and opportunities, and U.S. economic engagement is
tailored to our broader relationship with each country.
A deliberate and strategic approach to capacitybuilding,
outreach, and training is a necessary ingredient
for the U.S. Government’s international engagement
to be effective in strengthening the abilities of other
countries to meaningfully protect IPR. The discussion
of how to promote this coordination within foreign
governments abroad should be understood in
the context of (i) a Capacity-Building Assessment,
comprised of a comprehensive evaluation (on a
country-by-country, regional, or other basis that reflects
domestic priorities) of the specific nature and severity
of the impediments to effective IPR protection; and (ii) a
Capacity-Building Plan that prioritizes and outlines the
forms of international support that the U.S. Government
should undertake in relation to capacity-building.
A review of capacity-building, outreach, and training
efforts during the two years immediately preceding this
Plan 17 revealed that opportunities exist to continue to
better understand and evolve how U.S. collaboration
may be most effective in the short- and long-term.
At the most fundamental level, IP-related Capacity-
Building exercises are carried out with the objective to
help enhance a country’s operational effectiveness in IPR
protection and enforcement, as well as forward-looking
discussions and consultations that assist governments
upon request as they contemplate new laws, regulations,
or policies, as appropriate.
FIG. 60
CAPACITY-
BUILDING
ASSESSMENT
Prepare a comprehensive
evaluation of impediments to
effective IPR protection by
identifying specific challenges
and the severity of the
challenges.
CAPACITY-
BUILDING
PLAN
Prepare a plan that prioritizes
concrete actions by country or
region and outlines the forms of
international engagement that
U.S. Government should
undertake.
SECTION 4
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