WIPO, UNDP seek robust IP system for creativity, innovation

By Guardian Nigeria

03 May 2023   |   3:35 am

World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in collaboration with The Nest Innovation Hub, have hinged creativity and innovation on a robust Intellectual Property (IP) System.

   

Gathered at a forum with the theme, ‘Intellectual Property and Development: Creative Ecosystem Conversation, held at Microsoft Office, Kings Tower, Ikoyi, Lagos, UNDP, WIPO and stakeholders listed the benefits of the creative sector to Nigeria’s economy and Africa at large. They noted that there was need to build networks and partnerships to drive inclusion and diversity within the sector.

      

Presenting the keynote address at the forum, the Assistant Director General, Global Challenges and Partnership Sector for WIPO, Edward Kwakwa, emphasised the importance of a robust IP system in promoting creativity, innovation, and sustainable development.  

     

To ensure maximum impact is made, Kwakwa said there should be a clear understanding of what and where the challenges lie so that appropriate measures can be taken to tackle factors limiting the promotion of creativity and innovation.  

    

According to him, “Intellectual property is just as important and plays a pivotal role in developing and developed countries. That’s why we should strive to use a global intellectual property system to achieve results that will be in the interest of everyone, everywhere.”

     

On his part, the Director of WIPO Nigeria, Dr. Oluwatobiloba Moody, said there is a need for collaborations and partnerships to drive growth and inclusion within Nigeria’s creative ecosystem.

At the panel session, with the conversation on Business Partnerships for Creative Enterprises and the importance of canvassing for a common front, panelists including Chin Okeke, Godwin Tom, ToluOlaloye, Beverley Agbakoba, Obi Asika, Dr. John Asein represented by Lynda Alpheus, Sasha P, and Obi Asika, stressed the need to have a common front in pushing a holistic agenda within the space where creative stakeholders come together to demand policies that protect and reward creators in Nigeria and on the African continent.

    

The UNDP delegation was led by Williams Tsuma, Head of the United Nations Development Programme, Lagos and present were special guests like Tunbosun Alake, the Special Adviser to the Lagos State government on Innovation and Technology, Col. Felix OrevogheneAlaita, Senior Special Assistant to the President (Country Risk Assessment and Evaluation) and other notable industry leaders. They stressed the importance of creative stakeholders in building relationships with their local representatives in government to tackle challenges head-on.

   

They also emphasized the role of international agencies in supporting the creative sector towards realizing the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals and foster a beneficial economy for all players.