• The agreement will see Korean IP experts arrive in the Saudi capital

Mohammed Al-Kinani

JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia and South Korea recently agreed to implement 35 intellectual property projects together.

A memorandum of understanding was signed on the sidelines of the Saudi-Korean Investment Forum in Riyadh by Dr. Abdulaziz Al-Suwailem, chief executive officer at the Saudi Authority for Intellectual Property, and Dr. Kim Yong Rae, commissioner of the Korean Intellectual Property Office, in the presence of Korean President Moon Jae-in.

The agreement, according to a statement, “enhances the strategic partnership between South Korea and Saudi Arabia,” and will involve the secondment of Korean IP experts to Riyadh.

SAIP spokesman Yasser Hakami told Arab News that the MoU laid out the framework, projects, timeline and procedures for the specified bilateral cooperative activities.

“Within this arrangement, the two sides will implement a number of programs and projects that will foster an IP ecosystem through patent examination, IP information, and national IP strategies. There will also be an IP Academy program, in which invention classes will be provided to elementary school children. The program will also include developing and implementing promotional activities to encourage Saudi female inventors,” Hakami said.

He added that the two parties will meet regularly to review and evaluate the implementation of this arrangement and “will suggest complementary measures or future plans if needed.”

According to the agreement, the two sides may allow third parties from both countries to take part in implementing the projects. The agreement will remain in effect until all the programs and projects are completed, which is expected to take two years.

This is not the first time the two parties have collaborated. On September 25, 2018, KIPO and SAIP signed an MoU on bilateral cooperation in the field of intellectual property at a high-level meeting in Geneva.