BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - MINISTER OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE Hon. Lindsay Grant is of the view that Intellectual Property Right could be used as a pillar for economic growth and exports.
Addressing participants at the opening ceremony of a two-day WTO National Workshop on the Agreement of Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) yesterday (Oct. 25) at the Ocean Terrace Inn, Minister Grant explained that it is one of the agents that would spur exports for the Federation’s small business sector and entrepreneurs.
With the Federation plugged into the digital age where accessing data and other forms of information is very easy, Grant believes that the time has come when entrepreneurs and investors must benefit from the commercial value of their work.
“I believe that the time has come for our cherished Federation to take the reins of its own destiny and steer ourselves in the direction that will bring us much closer to our national policy for employment creation, sustainable economic growth and development. We must now understand that the world would not be so kind to us as it once was, and therefore citizens must trust that we as policy makers and enforcer ensure that they can rely on us to safeguard their patents, trademark and their copyrights.”
Intellectual Property Rights has been a topic that was thrust into the spotlight after an artiste competing in this year’s Culturama Calypso Competition was accused of plagiarizing another artiste’s material. That artiste eventually won the competition.
A similar situation occurred last year when one of the artistes was accused of producing plagiarized material at the National Carnival Soca Monarch Competition. That artiste however did not win the event.
This year, the organizers of the National Carnival had purported to vet artistes’ music but that decision received an outcry from calypsonians, but the Soca singers agreed to the vetting process which is described as Article 6.
Grant told participants of the workshop - who are from both the public and private sectors, including Carnival Chairman Noah Mills - that the absence of any Intellectual Property Rights “would be an open invitation for counterfeiters and pirates who will surely and definitely come to our shores or by the click of a button rob us of the many commercial opportunities and international exposure to be derived from our IP”.
“It is no doubt that Intellectual Property Rights Protection and Enforcement are rules that I take very seriously and personally. So our policy to advance our economy, to build a healthy socio-economic environment for our people and thrust the nation further into the global value chain may not be possible without ensuring that we have mechanisms such as Intellectual Property Rights Protection and Enforcement of paramount importance on our agenda.”
Among topics discussed were the TRIP Agreement and Relationship between WTA and WIPO, WIPO Treaties on Copyrights and related Rights and Development and WIPO Treaties on Intellectual Property and Development.
