Second Botswanan Minister To Urge IP Focus

Cabinet minister Pelonomi Venson-Moitoi has urged universities, research and technology transfer institutions to focus on using their intellectual property in a meaningful way to help the economy. Speaking at a workshop held with WIPO at the University of Botswana, she stated that the exploitation of IP has become central in the government's current debates on development. She noted that "the world is undergoing total economic transformation, whereby wealth is no longer measured in physical assets but rather in intellectual property. Manufacturing and all forms of economic production are increasingly becoming IP based". This is the second time in as many weeks that a Botswanan Minister has spoken out on the importance of an effective intellectual property regime to the Botswanan economy.

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