St. Petersburg hosted the 11th International Anti-Counterfeiting Forum. More than 600 guests took part in the main events of the Forum, which took place on 5–6 October at the Yeltsin Presidential Library.
The theme of the event was: ‘Culture of Authenticity. Life without Fakes and Counterfeits’. In 2023, the Forum primarily focused on the feasibility of developing a unified approach to regulating the markets of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), measures to combat cross-border illegal trade, the harmonization of excise tax rates across the EAEU, and expanding the range of goods subject to labelling. This is all particularly important considering the consistent growth in mutual trade between EAEU countries, which increased by 14% to a record USD 83.3 billion in 2023.
The 11th International Anti-Counterfeiting Forum included an agreement signing ceremony on cooperation in combating illicit trafficking in industrial products, which was attended by Director of the National Research Centre of Expertise in Combating the Illegal Trafficking of Industrial Products Irina Bushina and President of the League for Assistance to Defence Enterprises and Chairman of the Russian State Duma’s Committee on Industry and Trade Vladimir Gutenev.
In addition, the 5th International Anti-Counterfeiting-M Youth Forum was held on 6 October with a focus on promoting legal awareness among young people as a key factor to effectively combat illegal products in the EAEU. The Forum was attended by students who won the ‘Young People for Civilized Business’ Russian Youth Scientific and Practical Conference, which took place on 20–21 September 2023 at the Faculty of Security and Customs of the North-West Institute of Management of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration.
The TC 124 Technical Committee for Standardization also held a meeting on ways and methods to combat forgery and counterfeiting, during which experts discussed the importance of further developing of standardization processes, using best practices to protect against counterfeiting, and a recap of the technical committee’s work.
The Forum also included an exhibition that featured unique works of Russian folk art, which aimed to showcase the masterpieces of local craftsmen and demonstrate their value in the context of Russia’s historical memory, national identity, and the preservation of a unique cultural code.
Main goal:
To ensure a constructive dialogue about problems concerning the innovative economy and how to develop effective mechanisms for the legal protection of the interests of consumers and businesses, including combatting the production and distribution of counterfeit products, which poses a serious threat to economic security.
The 11th International Anti-Counterfeiting Forum was organized by the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade and co-organized by the Eurasian Economic Commission. The business programme partners included: Centre for the Development of Advanced Technologies (operator of the Honest Sign state labelling system), the autonomous non-profit organization National Research Centre of Expertise in Combating the Illegal Trafficking of Industrial Products, and the Anti-Counterfeiting International Association of Organizations Combating the Illegal Trafficking of Counterfeit Products.
Operator of the Forum: Roscongress Foundation
Official Partner: X5 Group
Partners: 1C Company, Laser Centre, and Sibur
Business Programme Partners: National Research Centre of Expertise in Combating the Illegal Trafficking of Industrial Products, the Advanced Technologies Development Centre, and the Anti-Counterfeiting International Association
Organization Partners: Lamoda, Yandex Market, Kaspersky Lab, Tatspirtprom, Vysoky Bereg (Kuban-Vino), and Aqua Holding.