TITLE: Viet Nam accedes to the UPOV Convention AUTHOR: International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants PUBLICATION: Press release DATE: 24 November 2006 URL: http://www.upov.int/en/news/pressroom/pdf/pr70.pdf UPOV Press Release No. 70 | Geneva, November 24, 2006 VIET NAM ACCEDES TO THE UPOV CONVENTION Today Viet Nam became the sixty-third member of the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV). The purpose of the UPOV Convention is to encourage the development of new varieties of plants by granting breeders an intellectual property right on the basis of a set of clearly defined principles. To be eligible for protection, varieties need to satisfy certain conditions, such as being distinct from existing, commonly known varieties and sufficiently uniform and stable. New varieties of plants are one of the most powerful tools to enhance food production in a sustainable way, to increase income in the agricultural sector and to contribute to overall development. The Secretary-General of UPOV, Dr. Kamil Idris, welcomed the deposit of the instrument of accession of Viet Nam to the UPOV Convention (1991 Act) and expressed his satisfaction that UPOV has now reached 63 members. The members of UPOV are: Albania, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, European Community, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Russian Federation, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States of America, Uruguay, Uzbekistan and Viet Nam (as of December 24, 2006). UPOV is an intergovernmental organization which is based in Geneva. For further information about UPOV, please contact the UPOV Secretariat: Tel: (+41-22) 338 9155 | Fax: (+41-22) 733 0336 | E-mail: upov.mail(at)upov.int | Website: www.upov.int