CIPA secures support at the WTO with new report: Patents as Engines of Growth

We have been active on the international stage once again, taking part in this year’s World Trade Organization (WTO) Public Forum in Geneva.

CIPA President Bobby Mukherjee and Deputy Chief Executive Neil Lampert joined the UK delegation organised by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) United Kingdom, meeting senior WTO representatives and international partners to emphasise the importance of patents to innovative businesses and international trade.

Bobby and Neil went armed with a new joint CIPA/ICC UK/IP Federation report, Patents as Engines of Growth, which demonstrates how patents are essential strategic business tools for innovative businesses of all sizes and not the preserve of big business.

The report features a case study of Esther Kimani, CEO of Kenyan agri-tech start-up FarmerLifeline Technologies, who has patented a solar-powered AI farm surveillance system. Her innovation provides real-time crop disease detection for just $3 per month, helping farmers reduce losses and increase productivity. Esther is pursuing international patent protection and has been nominated by CIPA for this year’s Earthshot Prize.

One of the highlights of the visit was a meeting with Matthew Wilson, Barbadian Ambassador to the WTO and Chair of the WTO’s Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSME) Working Group. Ambassador Wilson agreed to host our report and a previous CIPA/ICC UK/IPFed co-authored report, Why Patents Are Essential for Innovation and Growth, on the MSME Group’s website and to collaborate in other areas designed to make intellectual property more accessible to smaller businesses. We thanked Ambassador Wilson for his openness and willingness to partner with us.

On the second day of the Forum, Bobby, Neil and Brendan Vickers, ICC UK Policy Director, held discussions with Marumo Nkomo, Economic Counsellor at the South African Mission to the WTO. The meeting centred on ways to demonstrate the value of patents and balanced IP protection to businesses in South Africa and across the African continent.

Mr Nkomo agreed to work with Neil to promote Esther Kimani’s story – and those of other successful African women entrepreneurs – at TRIPS Council level (WTO’s Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) and across Mr Nkomo’s African IP network.

CIPA’s presence at the WTO underlines the international role of the UK patent profession. More than 2,000 chartered patent attorneys work in private practice, generating around £1 billion annually for the UK economy. With three-quarters of this value linked to international clients filing patents in Europe, patent attorneys rank among the UK’s most export-intensive professional groups.

“Intellectual property is a vital part of international trade, and our profession plays a key role in ensuring innovation is protected and promoted across borders,” said President Bobby Mukherjee.

Through its partnerships with organisations such as ICC UK, CIPA continues to expand its global influence – supporting SMEs, building international collaboration, enhancing the stablity of the global IP system and ensuring that the UK patent profession’s voice is heard at the highest levels.

We are grateful to Brendan Vickers and Chris Southworth, ICC UK Secretary General, and  Lizzie Wilson, the UK’s IP Attaché in Geneva, for their ongoing support for this work.

Date published: 22 September 2025

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