Geneva, March 4, 2026. Ambassador of Cuba in Geneva, Rodolfo Benítez Verson, formally deposited today at the headquarters of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Cuba's instrument of accession to the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled.
Each year, of the millions of books published worldwide, only between 1% and 7% are made available to the 285 million blind and visually impaired people, 90% of whom live in developing countries.
To address this problem, known as the global book hunger, WIPO member states adopted the Marrakesh Treaty on June 27, 2013, which entered into force on September 30, 2016.
The Treaty aims to facilitate access to published works for people with disabilities that interfere with the effective reading of printed material. This includes people who are blind, visually impaired, or have reading difficulties, as well as people with physical disabilities that prevent them from holding and manipulating a book.
The Treaty was conceived in accordance with the principles established in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. In fact, the Marrakesh Treaty is the first copyright treaty clearly based on human rights.
The Marrakesh Treaty, which has a clear social dimension, is part of a body of international copyright treaties administered by WIPO.
The Treaty will legally enter into force for Cuba three months after the deposit of the instrument of accession, that is, on June 4, 2026.