ISLAMABAD, Jul 27: A two-day international advanced training course on intellectual property kicked off in Islamabad on Wednesday.

More than 300 participants, including over 230 online participants from some 11 countries, attended this important event organised by COMSTECH in collaboration with Inter-Islamic Network of Science and Technology Parks in Iran.

The inaugural session of the training was presided by Seyed Mohammad Ali Hosseni, the Ambassador of Islamic Republic of Iran in Pakistan

Addressing the session, the Iranian ambassador said the Islamic world is full of talent and human capital which needs to be tapped for the development of Islamic world. He said maintaining the ownership and rights were particularly important for the development of regional trade. He suggested that Islamic countries should consider it as one of the main prerequisites for the development of regional trade.

The ambassador said Islamic Republic of Iran always supports COMSTECH activities and hosted COMSTECH Networks in the fields of intellectual property and virtual universities of the Islamic world. He said the goal of COMSTECH was to help in promoting bilateral and multilateral relations of Islamic countries in the development of science and technology and scientific capacity building. Important steps have been taken but there is a long way to go, he added.

Addressing the session, COMSTECH Coordinator General Prof Dr M Iqbal Choudhary said innovation in technology is moving very fast and a credible intellectual property system is a powerful stimulus to such innovation. The protection of intellectual property rights (IPRs) greatly influences investment decisions, both in the industrial sector and in research and development, he said. “However, nations can only benefit from the innovation potential of their scientists and technologists if they have the competence and capacity to protect their IPRs both nationally and internationally to translate them into saleable products and services for socio-economic development,” he added.

He said that IPRs are now the backbone of global trade and business, and that in 2020, developing countries paid USD 340 billion in royalties for the use of IP and received USD 80 billion. A large portion of innovation in the developing world is either wasted or pirated due to the lack of IPRs policies and practices. He said that nations and individuals should build their capacity to protect their intellectual capitals and use them for socio economic development.

The ambassadors of Yemen, Iraq and Sudan participated in the inaugural session along with participants from Uzbekistan, Malaysia and Iran.

Credits: INP-WealthPk