Amna Jaber Al Kuwari (left), Director of Intellectual Property Protection at MoCI and Eng. Mohammed Al Qasabi, Head of Robotic and AI at Qatar Scientific Club
Doha: The number of intellectual property (IP) applications filed by young entrepreneurs and inventors at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) has surged over the past year amid a booming entrepreneurship ecosystem and the rising number of young innovators in the Qatari market, according to an official.
Speaking to The Peninsula on the sidelines of the World Intellectual Property Day Ceremony organised by the MoCI yesterday, Amna Jaber Al Kuwari (pictured), Director of Intellectual Property Protection at MoCI said the IP applications by young people in Qatar have even exceeded the expectations at the Ministry.
“We see a lot of numbers. The new generation is into business, and they are exceeding our expectation on a daily basis. They are contributing to the economy through their small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and entrepreneurial projects. And we encourage them to protect their rights by registering in each and every aspect of intellectual property, whether it is a trademark, trade secret, patent, or copyright. We would like them to be protected, and it is also part of contributing to the country’s Global Innovation Index (GII),” said Al Kuwari.
Speaking about IP applications filed in Qatar last year, she said the number of orders for introduction to trademark protection stood at 1,422, while the number of applications submitted by foreigners to register a trademark was 7,983.
Also in 2021, as many as 262 applications were filed for copyright protection in Qatar, while there were 91 domestic and foreign patent applications which have been recorded in the
country.
As many as 665 requests for patents were also filed through the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), an international unified procedure for filing patent applications.
Meanwhile, the number of IP violations recorded in Qatar last year was 17, while as many as 29 inspection campaigns have been carried out by the Ministry to protect IP rights in the country.
“For 2022, we have set up a long-term plan for the whole year, where we will conduct awareness campaigns targeting the entrepreneurs and inventors. This year’s theme for the World Intellectual Property Day focuses on ‘IP and Youth: Innovating for a Better Future’. And here in Qatar, we empower our youth to celebrate their innovation and entrepreneurship. We are very supportive to them, and we try to empower them to be more creative, to create an economy that is based on knowledge and creativity,” Al Kuwari added.
Also speaking to The Peninsula on the sidelines of the event, Eng. Mohammed Al Qasabi, Head of Robotic and AI at Qatar Scientific Club who also won 3rd Best Arab Inventor in Stars of Science 13 last year and 5th Best Inventor in the World in TIF 2021 said: “Innovation is not only about technology, science, or even startups. It’s also about entrepreneurs who are opening restaurants, launching companies, selling books or even artworks. These kinds of innovation must be protected for the rights of these people who worked really hard on their projects. So no one can easily come and copy these ideas or works, and just benefit from them. IP must be taken into consideration by all entrepreneurs and people in innovative projects”.
The young innovator has invented a smart system that keeps track of football players’ performances called ‘Opas’, which is currently tested in football matches.
