The 18th Meeting of the Heads of Intellectual Property Offices of BRICS countries concluded its second day in New Delhi on September 2, 2026, with approximately 35 delegates participating through both virtual and physical formats. The three-day meeting, hosted by India's Office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks under the DPIIT, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, saw physical participation from most member offices while delegates from Russia, Iran, and Ethiopia joined online.
As a major outcome, the meeting adopted Updated Operational Guidelines designed to guide result-oriented cooperation, promote cross-border innovation, and strengthen joint efforts in shaping global IP standards. The deliberations were aligned with India's BRICS Chairship theme of "Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability," emphasizing how IP frameworks foster technological resilience and sustainable economic growth.
The Heads of IP Offices recognized the importance of traditional knowledge and traditional systems of medicine as part of shared cultural and intellectual heritage, highlighting the need for their protection and preservation. The meeting noted progress under the Study on Reinforced Patent Examination Cooperation in BRICS, which aims to streamline processes, reduce backlogs, and improve the exchange of search results among member countries.
Additionally, the meeting acknowledged the role of IP BRICS Offices in supporting technological development through patent analytics and landscape studies, with specific findings on Patent Analytics and Geographical Indications (GIs) to improve efficiency and strengthen the protection and commercialisation of GI products across BRICS markets.
The meeting concluded deliberations on several new projects to deepen institutional engagement, including the BRICS Intellectual Property Awareness Series, IP BRICS FinTech Innovation Monitor, BRICS Industrial Property Commercialisation Forum and Best Practices Repository, initiatives on IP policies for public health and development, Research on Design Systems of BRICS, and the Manual of Patent Documentation and Information Resources of BRICS Countries.
The Heads of IP BRICS Offices emphasized the importance of establishing coordination mechanisms and conducting periodic reviews of progress to ensure effective implementation of projects and maintain continuity of cooperation within the IP BRICS grouping. Delegates expressed appreciation to India's Office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks for successfully organizing the meeting, which reflected India's expanding global IP footprint under its 2026 BRICS Chairship.