You would think that a country which just emerged from a revolution would relent on something like intellectual property (IP); but that is not for Egypt as this little Leo found out. Last year, we were impressed by the online presence of its IP offices; on review, this blog is pleased to see that such effort has been maintained.
During this Leo's space trek, he came across two organisations working in the field of IP and ICT in Egypt: The Egyptian Center for Intellectual Property and Information Technology (ECIPIT), and the Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA). The ECIPIT is an NGO whose goal is to increase IP awareness in the ICT sector and how to use them for development; while the ITIDA supports the development of the software industry in various ways, as well as increasing social awareness of IP
issues in Egypt.
This Leo was further impressed to learn that Adobe Systems launched an innovative pricing scheme for its products in an effort to ensure affordability and curb software piracy in Egypt. (Afro Leo knows that IP, patent in particular, deservedly gets the negative coverage, especially, when holders fail to innovate or unfairly stifle others)
Well, it appears Egypt has more to gain out of IP than some countries in Africa.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Egypt and WIPO discuss boosting joint cooperation, see here
