Washington, DC The International Intellectual Property Institute (IIPI) announced today that the second phase in its national IP development program in Thailand was completed this week. Thailand, in recent months, has been developing a national biotechnology strategy, with the goal of becoming a world leader in biotechnology research and industry. To support this effort, IIPI developed a report addressing intellectual property-related barriers to the implementation of Thailand’s biotechnology strategy.
The report, An Intellectual Property System in Thailand for Bio-Innovation and Commercialization: A National Strategy for Business, Government and the Technology Community, lays out ten specific recommendations that if adopted, will greatly strengthen Thailand’s bid at becoming a world leader in biotechnology. Some of the more important recommendations coming from the report stress that Thailand should 1) institute patent protection for non-naturally occurring life-forms, 2) establish a public-private technology transfer system, 3) reform the role of the Thai patent office, and 4) promote greater awareness and appreciation of intellectual property rights. The report was authored by Senior IIPI Consultant Mike Ryan and IIPI Project Manager Eric Garduño.
“Thailand is making great strides in building a biotechnology industry, however, it takes more than just great research institutions to create a biotechnology industry; it takes a system of laws, policies and practices to ensure that new biotechnologies can be effectively commercialized,” notes Garduno. “The recommendations we presented in our report will go far in providing the right kind of environment for biotechnology businesses to thrive.”
The report was presented by Ryan at a half day conference titled “Intellectual Property Roadmap for Thailand,” held at the Westin Grande Sukhumvit. The conference was organized by the Thailand Research Fund (TRF), the National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (BIOTEC), Chulalongkorn University (CU), and the Kenan Institute Asia (KIAsia).