Adrian Frater, News Editor

Dr. Kamil Idris, the director general of WIPO. - Contributed

Western Bureau:

As developing countries such as Jamaica continue to seek out new ways to develop sustainable economies, Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), Dr. Kamil Idris, believes the answer could lie in the creation of copyright-based industries.

In examining copyright-based industries as a wealth-creation tool at a recent WIPO seminar in Geneva, Switzerland, Dr. Idris said these industries had the potential to generate billions of dollars for developing countries.

Awesome potential

However, Dr. Idris noted that factors such as governmental ineptitude and general ignorance of intellectual property (IP), especially in countries where the knowledge of IP and its awesome potential are limited, were proving to be impediments in the way of deriving real benefits.

"The difficulty that now exists in some developing countries is that politicians have not yet started to give serious thought to the IP system," said Dr. Idris. "There is not enough local knowledge about what it does and how it can be used to support the development of the countries."

IP assets

In looking at specific IP assets such as patents, trademarks, copyrighted works, industrial designs, geographical indications and trade secrets, Dr. Idris said developing countries were underutilising these provisions, which other countries such as Singapore have used to build strong sustainable economies.

"Singapore does not produce anything, yet, they have the biggest refinery on earth," said Dr. Idris, in explaining how a rich investment climate, human capital and research could lead to the creation of a strong economy based on the principles of IP. "Because they have created the right climate, investment in Singapore is bigger than the entire continent of Africa."

In calling for greater awareness of IP in developing countries such as Jamaica, Dr. Idris said that in addition to a need to make IP an integral part of the curriculum of schools, there is also a critical need for a greater understanding and appreciation of IP assets such as patents - creating new invention, which can become a major economic tool.

Invention

"If you don't invent, you will perish. Invention means production. Invention means competition. Invention means trade," noted Dr. Idris. "If you are not able to produce, compete and trade, you are dead."

In outlining WIPO's plans to help countries with rich resources in culture and traditional knowledge, Dr. Idris said part of the organisation's mandate is to expand its intellectual property system to protect traditional knowledge and genetic resources - genetic material of actual or potential value in plants, animals and microbial units of heredity.

"In Africa, traditional knowledge (practices of indigenous and local communities) and genetic resources are more important than oil resources in terms of earning potential," noted Dr. Idris. "In Brazil, the copyright industry was valued at US$60 billion in 1999, which was more than eight per cent of the country's gross domestic product and accounted for six per cent of the countries employment."

Jamaica, which became a member of WIPO in 1978, is party to several WIPO-administered intellectual property treaties and has its own local organisation, the Jamaican Intellectual Property Office.

During the seminar, which was attended by journalists from 22 countries, it came to the fore that Jamaica could be losing large chunks of potential revenue from the exploitation of our music and culture, limited returns from the local knowledge that has gone into the development of pharmaceutical products, and the failure of local designers to patent their work.