Cambodia

Cambodia, also Kampuchea, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is 181,035 square kilometres (69,898 square miles) in area, bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the northeast, Vietnam to the east and the Gulf of Thailand to the southwest [1].

The sovereign state of Cambodia has a population of over 16.95 million, with GDP per capita at 1281 USD (estimated by the end of 2021).

Cambodia’s economy continues to show signs of robust growth, underpinned by solid export performance and strong domestic demand. Rising domestic consumption fueled by a surge in FDI inflows in recent years drove import growth. The financial sector is playing an increasingly important role in the economy. Growth in labor income was the key driver of poverty reduction in Cambodia[2].

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambodia

[2] May 2019: Cambodia Recent Economic Development and Outlook

Law Concerning Marks, Trade Names and Acts of Unfair Competition. This Trademark Law including 16 Chapters, 72 Articles, ensures Intellectual Property Right Enforcement mechanism which follows the principles of TRIPS.

Cambodia was approved for membership and join the WTO in July 2004. Cambodia’s IP laws now are in compliance with its WTO member commitments. The Law on Patents, Utility Model Certificates and Industrial Designs (“Patent Law”) was passed in 2003 with a procedural sub-decree issued in 2006.

Cambodia is also a member of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property.

Although Cambodia has established many new laws in the field of IP, it will be a number of years before Cambodia comes into full WTO compliance. For instance, Cambodia currently benefits from the World Trade Organization waiver allowing Least Developed Countries (LDCs) to avoid granting and enforcing IP rights on pharmaceutical products until 2033. This waiver would also apply to European, Singapore and Chinese patents providing protection for pharmaceutical products, for which validation is sought in Cambodia.

Cambodia’s IP legal framework is still in the early stages of development, and enforcement of IPR in Cambodia remains a problem.

Nevertheless, there are procedures in place with respect to registration and enforcement of IPR, which are relatively efficient and which can be used by anyone who wishes to protect their rights in Cambodia.