Juan de Villafranca

Juan de Villafranca, executive director of the Asociacion Mexicana de Laboratorios Farmaceuticos (AMELAF), has launched new initiatives in the past two years of his term; the importance and strength of AMELAF as the representative association of 44 100 percent Mexican-owned pharmaceutical manufacturers; and the potential and capabilities of the local pharmaceutical industry.  He served as commissioner of patents and trademarks at Mexico's patent office (IMPI), and director of the national registry of foreign investment at Mexico's Secretariat of Commerce and Industrial Development. At Mexico's Secretariat of Foreign Relations, he progressed from deputy director of bilateral technical cooperation, director general of legal affairs, assistant to Secretary Fernando Solana, Mexican ambassador to Singapore, Brunei and Myanmar, to head of staff. He also served as president of the General Assembly of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), and general comptroller of Mexico's Secretariat of Tourism. Juan de Villafranca holds a degree in law from Universidad Iberoamericana.