Work on first SL Innovation Index begins
Work on Sri Lanka’s long awaited national Innovation Index which is set to measure the Lankan innovation portfolio, began in Colombo yesterday.
Leading local and international IP and innovation experts began brainstorming Sri Lanka innovation roadmap as soon as the launch event concluded during the morning session. Among the International panellists specially flying in for the Colombo session were WIPO Asia Pacific Regional Director Andrew Michael Ong, Cornell University Visiting Fellow Dr Richard S Cahoon, Julius & Creasy Senior Partner Dr. J.M. Swaminathan, Columbia Maryland’s ET Cube’s Intellectual Property Commercialisation specialist Yumiko Hamano and WIPO Senior Economist Dr Sacha Wunsch-vincent. Among the Lankan government officials were NIPO Director General Geethanjali Ranawaka, Secretary of Ministry of Industry and Commerce TMKB Thennakoon and Secretary of Ministry of Science and Technology R Wijayalakshmi-joined by many Lankan research and training institutions in both public and private sector.
Industry and Commerce Minister Rishad Bathiudeen addressed the inauguration of high profile National Level Innovation and Intellectual Property Policy Conference led by his Ministry’s National Intellectual Property Office joined by Coordinating Secretariat for Science, Technology and Innovation (COSTI), World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO- Geneva), and Ministry of Science and Technology of Sri Lanka.
“Today is an important day in Sri Lanka’s IP history as we launch this important index opening a new chapter. IP System of a country greatly contributes to its various development activities such as promotion of national creativity, research, technology transfer, licensing, commercialization of goods and services, and proper implementation of industrial policies. If we look at many developed economies practicing high level of innovation such as Japan and Korea, we can see that intellectual property has become a key growth driver for them” said Minister Bathiudeen.
“Their strong research and development are transformed into innovations and then patents are obtained. This trend is never more important than at present times. In 2014, Sri Lanka filed a total of 516 ‘Article 50’ Patent applications. Costa Rica, Tunisia and Uzbekistan are the only countries that filed Article 50 Patent applications in a somewhat similar range to Sri Lanka. Therefore an organized Intellectual Property System will not only pay back the innovator but also spreads knowledge and information to the society. The Government of Sri Lanka has recognized the usefulness of an active Intellectual Property System, and has taken major steps in promoting the use of Intellectual Property as a tool for economic and social development. The vision of our Government is to transform Sri Lanka’s economy into a knowledge based economy,” the Minister added.
WIPO Asia Pacific Regional Director Andrew Michael Ong said that innovation thrives in an environment of collaboration. “I see today a big gathering of players and actors of innovation systems in Sri Lanka. WIPO congratulates Sri Lanka for preparing this session. As a UN Agency, WIPO’S mandate is to provide info and support IP policy. We have been working with Sri Lanka’s NIPO and looking forward to take up key development projects in future as well.”