IAP Volunteers

The volunteers’ support is crucial for the success of the Inventor Assistance Program (IAP) and can deliver tremendous impact to local inventors and innovators, helping them to turn their ideas into valuable commercial assets. In this role, the IAP volunteers are contributing to strengthening the local innovation ecosystems.

The IAP volunteers take part in the community of international experts working with WIPO, where they get an opportunity to enhance their knowledge, professional skills and networks. Through working with the beneficiaries of the IAP, volunteers also grow their network and have an opportunity to build relationships with future paying clients.

Participating countries – Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Kenya, Morocco, Peru, the Philippines, Singapore, South Africa.

Become a volunteer

Meet our volunteers

"I consider it important to participate in the IAP to strengthen the IP culture in my country. Being part of this initiative helps spread the knowledge and importance of IP among local inventors and entrepreneurs, promoting its use in their businesses and transforming it into an everyday tool. It has been a very enriching experience, which has granted me the opportunity to discover interesting innovations, as well as to promote innovation and IP protection in Chile."

– Loreto Vera, Partner, Villaseca Abogados, Chile

"Participating in the IAP as a volunteer is a very rewarding and satisfying experience, as it is a fantastic opportunity to provide support and advice to independent inventors who make great efforts to protect their innovations."

– Andrés Casas Santofimio, Partner, Casas Santofimio Abogados, Colombia

"There is more happiness in giving than receiving. Providing pro bono assistance to inventors is an enormous help within the legal framework of their innovations, and thus their protection for commercial exploitation."

– Mohamed El Harzli, Professor and industrial property attorney, IP ADVICE & SERVICES, Morocco

"Being an IAP volunteer is important because it allows me to contribute to my country's patent system by providing support or specialized patent legal advice to low-income inventors. On the other hand, I feel that with constant contact with inventors throughout the whole process of obtaining the patent, I gain more experience in dealing with customers. Finally, I consider that being a volunteer lawyer for the IAP can generate new opportunities for personal and professional growth."

– Paola Armutt Villanueva, Patent Attorney, Estudio Muñiz, Peru

"As an inventor myself, I empathize with the needs of fellow inventors concerning intellectual property. Every inventor deserves recognition for their technological contributions, irrespective of their financial situation. As an IAP volunteer, I am committed to offering the guidance and support necessary to bring their ideas to life through a patent application. I am here to advocate for collaboration, urging us to work together to ensure that no innovative mind remains unrecognized."

– Armando R. Reosura, Professor, Carlos Hilado Memorial State University, Philippines

— Loreto Vera, Partner, Villaseca Abogados, Chile

Andrés Casas Santofimio, IAP volunteer from Colombia

— Andrés Casas Santofimio, Partner, Casas Santofimio Abogados, Colombia

Mohamed El Harzli, IAP volunteer from Morocco

— Mohamed El Harzli, Professor and industrial property attorney, IP ADVICE & SERVICES, Morocco

Paola Armutt Villanueva, IAP volunteer from Peru

— Paola Armutt Villanueva, Patent Attorney, Estudio Muñiz, Peru

Armando R. Reosura, IAP volunteer from the Philippines

— Armando R. Reosura, Professor, Carlos Hilado Memorial State University, Philippines

IAP Volunteers

Meet our volunteers

Abdelkader Rbaibi