NEC Endorses Papua New Guinea Intellectual Property Strategy
29 January 2021
In a bid to guide the integration of intellectual property into the national development initiatives, the National Executive Council (NEC) recently endorsed the Papua New Guinea Intellectual Property Strategy for 2020-2030.
With the PNG Government a supporter of strong IP rights for many years, this strategy leads to more investments and innovations in PNG from local and foreign businesses which will aid the growth of the PNG economy, as well as ensuring that some of the benefits of resource extraction in PNG are realised locally.
“Having strong IP rights makes a country more attractive to investment from businesses with existing IP rights,” says Edward Genocchio, Principal, Spruson & Ferguson. “It also fairly rewards local inventors and businesses for their contribution to IP assets created in that country. PNG will increasingly be viewed as a strong IP jurisdiction with continued protection of intellectual assets, which is particularly useful given the current upswing in mining markets.”
Before the development and endorsement of this IP strategy, PNG had Courts following a similar arrangement to Australia where the Courts can issue orders of various kinds, injunctions, pass judgment on infringement of IP rights and award damages. As with Australia, PNG Customs can also seize infringing goods. The Intellectual Property Office of PNG has been working closely with patent offices in other countries and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) to increase technical capabilities, improve services and bring PNG IP law into line with other countries.
“Our South Pacific Team often corresponds directly with the relevant PNG authorities that have powers to make decisions, rather than the extensive bureaucratic structures of other countries in the region, with reasonably prompt and satisfactory outcomes,” says Genocchio. “Improvements are likely to result in larger volumes of cases being processed similarly effectively.”
He says that as the strategy has been endorsed by the PNG National Executive Committee, the future is bright and should lead to new foreign investment in PNG and the growth of locally-based innovation, research and development increasing PNG’s own IP assets.
“It should give confidence to local inventors to strive forward with new ideas and start exporting PNG-created IP to overseas jurisdictions.”
Excel V. Dyquiangco
