Sri Lanka establishes national GI registry
The Morning: Sri Lanka has reached a significant milestone in its efforts to protect and promote geographical indications (GI), culminating in the establishment of the national GI registry.
This event was officially held recently in Colombo, marking a major step forward in securing the authenticity and competitiveness of Sri Lankan products in international markets.
The journey began with the Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) submitting an application for the GI registration of Ceylon Cinnamon, following the UNIDO-led GI roadmap funded by the STDF.
Despite challenges such as limited private-sector coordination and capacity, Sri Lanka navigated multiple rounds of inquiries and legal amendments.
A crucial breakthrough came when international GI experts, engaged through UNIDO, supported the development of a comprehensive resubmission of the GI dossier. This meticulous effort addressed technical concerns from the European Union (EU), particularly regarding the geographical linkage of Ceylon Cinnamon.
Ultimately, after overcoming strong opposition from the German Spice Association, Sri Lanka secured EU GI registration for Ceylon Cinnamon on 3 February 2022.
Following this success, the focus shifted toward establishing a local GI framework. With the approval of necessary regulations and legal provisions, the National Intellectual Property Office (NIPO), in collaboration with the EDB and UNIDO, successfully established Sri Lanka’s GI registry.
This registry enables farmers and producers’ associations to register and protect their products, ensuring authenticity and a competitive market advantage.
After three to four years of dedicated efforts, Sri Lanka is now celebrating this remarkable achievement. The opening of the GI registry marks a historic milestone, introducing a modern intellectual property system.
This initiative provides farmers and producers’ associations with the opportunity to register and safeguard their valuable products, ensuring authenticity and enhancing their position in international markets.
Sri Lanka now sets its sights on expanding GI protection beyond the EU. Efforts are underway to register Ceylon Cinnamon in key Latin American markets, including Mexico, Peru, and Colombia.
OSL take:
Sri Lanka is committed to uplifting and expanding the country’s exports industry and the latest move to establish a national GI registry would give a further boost to the local crop exports. While the many trade agreements and trade concessions enjoyed by Sri Lanka with many other countries have given a boost to the country’s exports sector, especially crop exports, the GI registry would add to the marketability of these exports. However, all these are also indicative of the overall growth and expansion of the country’s exports industry. Sri Lankan authorities are also focused on ensuring ethical product manufacturing processes while meeting the increasing demands in the foreign markets. Given the increasing business and growth potential in the industry, foreign businesses/investors on the lookout for lucrative business ventures could confidently invest in Sri Lanka’s exports industry, especially in crop exports. The growth and profits recorded by local businesses engaged in exports also indicate the lucrative nature of ventures in Sri Lanka’s exports industry.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/20250310/Z_2 |