The WCO holds a National Workshop on Combating Counterfeiting and Piracy in Honduras

From 22 to 26 April 2024, the World Customs Organization (WCO) organized a national workshop on border enforcement of intellectual property rights (IPR) in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, with the financial support of the Customs Cooperation Funds of China (CCF/China).

Led by a WCO accredited IPR expert and supported by a pre-accredited expert, the workshop brought together 24 frontline supervisors and officers from the Honduras Customs Administration with experience in enforcement and risk management.

The objective of this workshop was to increase participants' knowledge on IPR legal framework in Honduras and to develop effective national enforcement strategies to best ensure its enforcement.

In his opening remarks, Mr. Marvin Kevin Pavón, Head of the Intelligence Department of Honduras Customs, expressed his administration's deep gratitude to the WCO Secretariat and went on to say how important the protection of intellectual property was for the economy of his country. He urged the participants to participate very actively in the event and to take advantage of the offered opportunity to learn more about the WCO tools and instruments in the IP field.

During the five-day workshop, participants could learn about the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), the theoretical and practical concepts surrounding IPR risk management, the current global IPR infringement landscape, and the WCO IPR CENcomm secure communication tool and how it was working. 

The second day of the workshop was devoted to presentations from the private sector, either remotely or in person. Some 7 right holders, representing a variety of brands, presented the essential characteristics of products bearing their trademarks and shared techniques that could be used by Customs officers to detect counterfeit goods at borders.

In addition, other stakeholders, namely the Directorate of Consumer Protection, the National Directorate of Intellectual Property, the Special Prosecutor's Office and the Health Regulatory Agency, were invited to explain to the participants their commitment and strategy to ensure IP protection in Honduras, with the WCO strongly encouraging cooperation between Customs, right holders and other stakeholders to effectively combat IP crime.

At the end of the workshop, participants were able to carry out targeted controls at Ramón Villeda Morales International Airport and the Port of Cortés (or Puerto Cortés) under the guidance of WCO experts. These enabled the participants to put into practice the theoretical concepts they had learned during the workshop. The airport controls resulted in the seizure of counterfeit goods, which was a source of great satisfaction for the participants.

This workshop forms part of the implementation of the WCO IPR Strategy, approved by the Enforcement Committee at its 41st Session, of which capacity-building activities remain one of the core components.

For further details on our activities in the field of IPR protection, please contact us at: IPRteam@wcoomd.org.