University Of Ghana Held Intellectual Property Series To Promote Innovation And Creativity

Snap Shots Of Participants At The Various Sessions

The Technology Development and Transfer Centre (TDTC) of the Office of Research, Innovation and Development (ORID) has organized the “Intellectual Property Series”. The programmes formed part of measures to enhance awareness on intellectual property for researchers and staff at the University of Ghana. It was also expected to enhance innovation and intellectual property generation at the University of Ghana.

The Intellectual Property Series was formally opened by Professor Boateng Onwona-Agyeman, Acting Director of the Institute of Applied Science and Technology. In his remarks, he highlighted the benefits of intellectual property and commended the measures put in place to promote innovation and creativity at the University of Ghana.

Mrs. Diana Adobea Owusu Antwi, a Research Development Officer at the Office of Research, Innovation and Development (ORID), presented on the University of Ghana’s Intellectual Property Policy. Her presentation focused on the objective of the policy, intellectual property rights, ownership of intellectual property, the steps involved in the disclosure of an intellectual property through to its commercialisation and the allocation of royalties from commercialisation.

She also emphasised the need for researchers to involve ORID in the negotiation of research agreements or contracts in order to identify and address intellectual property and other related issues. Mrs. Owusu Antwi also encouraged researchers to avoid a disclosure of intellectual property to third parties until an application has been made to a national or regional intellectual property office to protect the intellectual property.

The second programme in the series focused on “Patents and Utility Models” and was facilitated by Mr. Kweku William Halm, a Senior State Attorney at the Registrar General’s Department. Participants were informed about the kind of inventions that could be protected with a patent, non-patentable inventions, conditions for grant of a patent, the patent application and grant processes. The session also touched on the rights offered by a patent, patent infringement and the impact of publication of the grant of a patent.

The session on Trademarks was facilitated by Mrs. Owusua Adansi–Ofori, a Senior State Attorney at the Registrar General’s Department. In her delivery, she touched on the kind of works that can be protected with trademarks, conditions required to obtain a trademark, rights offered by a trademark, relevance of trademarks on businesses, the procedure for grant of a trademark and trademark infringement. Ms. Seyywoe Kwakuvi-Zagbedeh, an Attorney at the Registrar General’s Department handled the session on Industrial Designs, along the lines of the presentation on trademarks.

Mr. Mahama Issah, a Research Officer of the Ghana Copyright Office facilitated the session on Copyrights and Related Rights. Participants were informed on the nature of works eligible for copyright protection, criteria for obtaining a copyright, rights offered by copyrights, copyrights in the digital environment, limitations and exceptions to the use of copyrighted works, copyright infringement, related rights, collective management of rights, traditional knowledge and expression of folklore.