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BACKGROUND
In January 2016, the Republic of Ghana launched its National Intellectual Property Policy aimed at providing a framework to enable the country maximize the tools of the IP system as part of its national development goals. The adoption of the Policy was as a result of recommendations emanating from an Intellectual Property Development Plan (IPDP) elaborated within the framework of WIPO Technical Assistance in 2008.
In the context of the implementation of the IPDP, capacity building workshops and seminars organized by the Regional Bureau for Africa, based on the request of the country, specifically targeting the nation’s universities and research and development (R &D) institutions, with a view to providing a better understanding of the importance of developing Institutional IP policies, came up with several conclusions and recommendations, primary amongst them, the need to elaborate IP policies within these institutions.
Following these developments, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), composed of 13 research institutions nationwide elaborated, in 2014, an Institutional IP policy aimed at protecting the proprietary rights of inventors and researchers vis à vis the outcome of their research work and also to provide a framework for administration and management of IP rights generated by the Council. Owing to administrative setbacks, CSIR was unable to launch the policy then, but has decided to re-engage the process this year.
In a letter dated January 19, 2016 (attached), CSIR requested WIPO’s technical assistance in a number of areas, including facilitating a review of the draft IP policy and providing comments for consideration by experts, recommending an institutional framework and strategy to help operationalize the policy and developing capacity building programmes for the institutional IP subcommittees and CSIR researchers and community at large.
In follow-up to this request, the Regional Bureau for Africa, |