Pakistan’s leading institute for higher education in science and technology has taken the lead in setting up the country’s first ever patent wall, a step expected to inspire the next generation of innovators.
The concept of patent walls is a fairly common one in institutes of higher learning across the world, where such walls are set up to acknowledge the spirit of invention and achievements of university students, besides inspiring others to follow in their inventive footsteps.
The wall has been set up at National University of Sciences and Technology’s (NUST) Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and was inaugurated by Rector Lt Gen (r) Naveed Zaman. The university says it is encouraging its researchers to promote the culture of ‘Patenting before Publication’ to enhance the university as well as country’s innovation index.
Encouraging students to engage in innovation, Rector Naveed Zaman said innovation was a key aspect of the Goal-9 of UNDPs’ Sustainable Development Goals that calls for support to domestic technology development, research and innovation in developing countries.
NUST presently has 33 granted patents, while it has applied for another 114 national and international patents.
The Higher Education Commission of Pakistan (HEC) has been at the forefront of promoting innovation and invention in higher education institutes of Pakistan. Also striving for the cause is the Intellectual Property Organisation (IPO) Pakistan. The two bodies, with help from World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and Ministry of Science and Technology, has set up as many as 34 technology and innovation support centres (TISC) in various institutes across the country. The centres have been set up under the WIPO’s TISC programme.
According to the WIPO website, the TISC provides “innovators in developing countries with access to locally based, high quality technology information and related services, helping them to exploit their innovative potential and to create, protect, and manage their intellectual property (IP) rights”.
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