New intellectual property laws for our new economy
22.01.2010
Steps are being taken to revise our intellectual property laws to match the country’s new economy and the situation in the world as a whole.
Charles Morin, chief negotiator for Seychelles’ accession to the World Trade Organisation, and Neema Nyerere-Drago, programme officer for the World Intellectual Properties Organisation (Wipo), said this during a workshop held at Care House yesterday on the revision plan.
Mr Morin said our laws to protect intellectual property came into force long ago – the Patents Act in 1901, the Trades Mark Decree in 1977 and the Copyright Act in 1984 – and need to be reviewed, given that there have been considerable developments in this field.
He said there is need to adopt the new laws to the Seychelles context so they can offer protection to our heritage as well as to foreign investors.
Both Mr Morin and Mrs Nyerere-Drago said Seychelles has a unique biodiversity from which useful products like medicines can be derived, but unless these are protected by law we could gain nothing from them.
They said delegates at the workshop hoped to come out with an intellectual property development plan for Seychelles.
The meeting followed a 10-day assessment of our property law needs, after the government had asked Wipo for help to update our intellectual property system and bring it into in line with our international obligations.
Wipo has since looked at our institutional framework and the level of awareness of intellectual property matters among the public.
“Intellectual property is the branch of law that protects and provides mechanisms to reward innovation and creativity, stimulating and rewarding innovative thinking and creativity, which is crucial in today’s highly competitive business environment and in turn leads to benefits to society and economic growth,” said Mrs Nyerere-Drago.
“The changed landscape of the global economy, a shift from bricks and mortar to a knowledge-based economy, has required that intellectual property becomes a major element in the development strategies of various sectors of the economy.
“There’s also a need to create a favourable environment for artistic talent and literary creativity to develop and benefit society through such means as promoting the use of new technology, providing incentives and proper enforcement to combat piracy of creative work.”
She said the delegates’ efforts will show that intellectual property – if used in a strategic way – can become a catalyst for progress in Seychelles.