With the enactment of the Geographical Indications Act 2020 last year, Pakistan is grasping the opportunity and taking significant steps in having its famous products registered under the law. After the registration of the Basmati Rice, the registration of the Himalayan Salt has followed suit. Pakistan is famous for its Himalayan Salt internationally but the name lacked international protection abroad since it was not registered in Pakistan and hence no grounds for reciprocal benefits under IP law regimes of other countries. With the enactment of our own GI law, Pakistan will now be looking for reciprocal benefits under the IP regimes of countries it exports its products to.
Member countries of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) need to give protection to GIs under Article 22-24 of the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) agreement. Unless Pakistan provides GI protection, it cannot obtain the same for its own goods in other countries that have the GI Law. The GI Law covers a wide variety of products that include industrial, agricultural, horticultural and others.
In the past an absence of an adequate law on GI has led to international brands to continue selling Pakistan-origin goods such as Paul Smith’s Peshawari Chappal, Moroccan Ajrak and California Basmati, depriving the country to get premium on its GIs in the international market.
