Marcos urges IPOPHL-WIPO collaboration to meet IP goals
PRESIDENT FERDINAND R. Marcos, Jr. has called on the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) to work closely with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in developing the Philippines’ IP regime, reiterating his push for innovation.
Reading the President’s speech at the World Intellectual Property Organization Asian Regional Conference, Trade and Industry Secretary Alfredo Pascual said IPOPHL is expected to “craft programs that will strengthen the country’s IP regime and contribute to our efforts in building the new Philippines that we aspire for.”
“I also urge everyone here to work together and harness the power of science, technology, and innovation as a catalyst for our post-pandemic transformation and our inclusive and sustainable development moving forward,” Mr. Marcos said in the speech.
With the Philippines ranking 59th in the last Global Innovation Index (GII), Mr. Marcos said the goal of his administration is to elevate the country to the top one-third of the world economy by 2028 in terms of the GII.
“We believe that by addressing gaps and challenges in innovation inputs and outputs indices as well as in making continued investments in our educational and research institutions, we will reach this dream in no time,” he said.
The President’s speech also mentioned the positive prospects for health innovation research in the country.
“I have the highest hopes that this conference — through the researchers’ findings and innovations as well as collaborations from the academe — would help create, discover, and adopt more impactful innovations for the benefit of our peoples and our global healthcare system,” he said.
The Senate has yet to pass a bill seeking to establish a national center for disease prevention and control, which is one of the administration’s priority legislative agenda. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza