Oman to take part in global celebration of World IP Day
Muscat - Under the slogan of ‘IP & SMEs: Taking your ideas to market’, the sultanate will take part in the global celebration of the World Intellectual Property (IP) Day, which falls on April 26.
To mark the occasion, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion (MoCIIP), in cooperation with the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation, Sultan Qaboos University, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority, Omani Association for Intellectual Property and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), will organise a webinar on Tuesday.
The webinar will highlight the ways to support the innovative projects, and how to take them to the market and the technology transferring offices in universities and research institutions. In addition it will shine a light on the role of intellectual property in supporting small and mediumsized enterprises (SMEs) as well as the role played by the WIPO in marketing the innovative ideas, MoCIIP stated.
H E Dr Saleh bin Said Masan, Undersecretary for Commerce and Industry in MoCIIP, said that the slogan for this year reflects the contribution of intellectual property rights to the growth of small and medium enterprises, and how they can be used to protect innovations, trademarks, patents, industrial designs, copyright and geographical indications, in order to create value by converting ideas into products and services and enriching them with competitive advantages. This leads to raising the quality of existing products and services, as well as improving their performance and financial results in a way that guarantees creating of job opportunities, enhancing prosperity and the growth for the enterprises, society and the country.
“The World IP Day provides an opportunity to introduce the importance of intellectual property rights to the communities, enriching the public awareness about IP rights and encouraging the public respect for intellectual property rights,” H E Dr Masan added.
He pointed out that based on the important role played by the
SMEs in the economy of countries by providing the products and services demanded by the markets on a daily basis and due to their proximity to the local communities and their knowledge of the necessities of the concerned societies, the public awareness about the IP will enable entrepreneurs to improve their business practices and in providing innovative ideas for projects in various fields. These fields include retail, agriculture, tourism and technology.
“Since innovation is one of the most important sources for enhancing competitive advantages for new products and services that distinguish them from other competitors, it is necessary to protect the rights of innovators, craftsmen, engineers, designers, artists and entrepreneurs, through the intellectual property system that aims at protecting their rights from loss or infringement,” he added.
H E Dr Masan said that the inventions, experiences, knowledge, trademarks and goodwill owned by companies are considered as economic resources and intangible assets that contribute to raising their market value and enhance the bargaining power of SMEs, as well as attracting investors.
Ali bin Hamad bin Saif al Maamari, director of the Intellectual Property Department at MoCIIP, stated that the sultanate’s participation in the global celebration of the World IP Day, contributes to spreading awareness among individuals, society and institutions that play the largest role in supporting the innovative segments in the society.
He said that the National Innovation Strategy relies on the intellectual property axis as a basic pillar to develop a national strategy for intellectual property, which can empower the sultanate to be ranked among the top 20 countries in the Global Innovation Index. The institutional cooperation strengthens the sultanate’s ability to generate valuable economic assets in the IP field, where the sultanate possesses wealth in the form of human capital, literary and artistic works, traditional knowledge, genetic and biological assets.