The first meeting of the Coordination Committee of the Moldovan-Swiss Intellectual Property Project (MSIP) – Swiss PartnershIP Moldova, financed by the Government of the Swiss Confederation and implemented by the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IPI), in close cooperation with the State Agency on Intellectual Property (AGEPI), was held on June 26, 2025, in Chisinau.

The overall objective of the MSIP Project is to contribute to the socio-economic development of the Republic of Moldova by enabling private sector stakeholders to use intellectual property rights more effectively and by improving the quality and efficiency of services provided in this field by national authorities.

The meeting brought together representatives of the Swiss partners and beneficiary institutions from the Republic of Moldova. On behalf of the Republic of Moldova, the committee’s work was chaired by Ms. Natalia Mogol, Deputy Director General of AGEPI. The Swiss delegation was led by Ms. Olga Allemann, Project Manager.

During the meeting, the results obtained since the launch of the project in September 2024 were presented, as well as the activities planned for the second semester of 2025. The discussions focused on the progress made within the three key components of the project:

• Legal Support and technical assistance around Geographical Indications (GI) system;
• Enforcement of intellectual property rights;
• Commercialization of intellectual property and support to Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).

The participants analyzed the activities carried out during the period under review and agreed on the priorities and actions planned for the next period.

AGEPI representatives emphasized the particular relevance of the support provided for the consolidation of the national system of geographical indications, with an emphasis on the process of developing a new draft law that will ensure the alignment of the regulatory framework of the Republic of Moldova with the acquis communautaire of the European Union.

“We highly appreciate the availability and openness demonstrated by the project in supporting the process of legislative harmonization in the Republic of Moldova and its valuable contribution to the promotion and increase of the visibility of local products with geographical indications”, mentioned Ms. Natalia Mogol.

In his intervention, Andrei Stratulat, representative of the Swiss Cooperation Office in the Republic of Moldova, welcomed the active involvement of the national partners in the implementation of the project and reiterated the commitment of the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and the Cooperation Office to further support the consolidation of the intellectual property system in the Republic of Moldova.

The first meeting of the Coordination Committee reconfirmed the commitment of both parties to intensify bilateral cooperation in the field of intellectual property and to continue joint efforts to achieve the objectives set out in the project.