Intellectual property policy document for CSIR launched

The Minister for Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI), DrKwakuAfriyie, yesterday launched an Intellectual Property (IP) Policy Document for the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).

The IP Handbook would among others provide easy reading and understanding of IP and would also be useful for research scientists and students pursuing courses in IP.

Unveiling it in Accra, Dr Afriyie stated that it was very important for the CSIR to take advantage of the expertise and enabling environment it was endowed with to improve upon its activities technologically, for the mobilisation of more resources.

He said “Currently, the pointers are clear and this is our time to take the bull by the horn and lead the way to prosperity using the frontiers and transforming power of science and technology.”

He expressed the hope that the document would spur researchers and technologists on, to be more innovative and come out with creative technologies and marketable products for the benefit of both the inventor and the CSIR.

‘It is my greatest expectation that the IP policy will protect the rights of the CSIR, its innovators, inventors, research sponsors and the public, while optimising the environment and incentives for research and for the creation of new IPs,” he added.

The minister commended the crafters of the IP policy document, the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and the Ghana Intellectual Property Organisation (GhIPO) for the supportive roles they played in the successful publication of the CSIR IP Policy document.

The Chairman of the Governing Council, CSIR, Professor Robert Kingsford-Adaboh in his remarks indicated that the dissemination of technical information was another important aspect of IP right, adding that 80 per cent of current technological knowledge and information could be found in patent documents.

IP protection, he said, was basic for innovations to thrive as it rewarded creativity and could generate tangible benefits to businesses, employees and the society at large.

According to him, the CSIR had developed a lot of technologies which have been profiled, catalogued and published for the information of the private sector, general public and as a reference material, adding that it was therefore gratifying that the new IP policy was developed and published for the benefit of both the innovator and the CSIR.

On her part, Chief State Attorney, Grace Ama Issahaque at the Head of Ghana Industrial Property Office, Accra, mentioned that the launch of CSIR’s IP policy was the first step CSIR was taking to incorporate IP into its business model.

She said it was very important for the CSIR to ensure that enough finances and human resource was made available as soon as possible for the implementation of the policy.

The Ghana Industrial Property Office of the Registrar General’s Department and its partners, she said, would continue to collaborate with stakeholders such as the CSIR to develop their intellectual property management systems.

BY RAISSA SAMBOU

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