ISLAMABAD:
World Intellectual Property Day was recently observed on April 26 with the theme “Creativity: The Next Generation”. The economies of advanced countries are based on creativity, innovation and advanced knowledge of science and technology. But in a developing country like Pakistan, creative individuals are deprived of the assistance needed to protect their intellectual property rights. Intellectual property protection and awareness of intellectual property rights have never been a priority in our country.
There is a sheer lack of human resource in this field of knowledge and no concerted effort has been made to bridge this knowledge gap. This non-serious attitude of the developing world towards one of the most important areas of knowledge has resulted in serious financial and intellectual loss. The present state of affairs not only discourages foreign direct investment but also results in mistrust of local investors. Creative individuals prefer to migrate to countries where their intellectual property rights are protected; this results in brain drain. Struggling economies like Pakistan can make rapid and sustainable progress if governments invest in capacity-building of its citizens and protect their creativity and innovations with proper implementation of effective intellectual property laws.
Muhammad Zaheer Abbas
Published in The Express Tribune, April 29th, 2013.
