A seminar on the topic “Trips agreement under the WTO regime: implications for Pakistan” was held by Industries, Commerce and Investment Department, government of Punjab with collaboration of Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) at Jinnah Auditorium, Lahore. Different experts of trips agreement were invited. All stakeholders, legal experts, students and professors from the academia participated in the seminar. Nabeel Javed, Additional Secretary, Industries, Commerce and Investment Department said the purpose of such seminars is to build capacity of government as well as private sector regarding Intellectual Property Rights.
He further informed more seminars would be organised on other topics of WTO in the near future. Advocate Majid Ali Wajid, Muhammad Ismael Deputy Director IPO, Rehmat Ullah Chairman Skill Development Council, Naeem Ullah Khan Lecturer Law College Punjab University and Farida Nazar Vice President Lahore Commerce and Industry also addressed the seminar. The speakers said Punjab government is seriously putting efforts to resolve issues of Intellectual Property. They added that due to unawareness, a producer/creator cannot fully get its benefits. Therefore, we should be aware of our rights and should know how to protect them, they added. They said legislation on Intellectual Property had already been made in Pakistan in 2000 and 2005, but the main issue is its implementation. They said the subject of IPR should be included in the syllabus at graduation level and liaison among the stakeholders should be created as it is very essential. They suggested training of law experts is also essential for prompt disposal of cases relating to trips.
