(Pictured above) 23 participants from mid-senior level government officials from Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Vietnam

IPOS International recently ran its first in-person week-long programme since the pandemic, welcoming participants from Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, and Vietnam at our Japan - Singapore Partnership for the 21st Century (JSPP21) x Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI): Workshop on Intellectual Property (IP) Rights Enforcement & Policy programme during IP Week @ SG 2022.

Led by IPOS International faculty and IPOS colleagues together with Japan Customs, participants learnt about how Singapore and Japan work to build robust IP regimes through effective IP policymaking, IP rights border protection, and related good practices that promote respect for IP in the region. They also explored emerging trends and business considerations in IP enforcement from the perspectives of legal practitioners, collective management organisations, service providers, and private companies, to gain a better understanding of the different commercial concerns at play. To wrap things up, participants also went on learning journeys to 3M and MightyJaxx to experience first-hand how enterprises, be it MNCs or local companies, best leverage their IP to manage risks and maximise outcomes.

Course title

JSPP21 X IAI: Workshop on Intellectual Property (IP) Rights Enforcement & Policy

Date

05 to 09 September 2022 (In-person)

Objectives

The programme aimed to share the experiences of Singapore and Japan in protecting IP rights, promoting respect for IP and preventing counterfeit trade. The programme covered IP policymaking, IPR border protection, and related good practices in Singapore and Japan. Participants learnt about the international regimes protecting IP rights, the role of multilateral institutions, and the latest developments in IP law and practice.

Participant’s Profile

The programme was attended by 23 participants, mid to senior‐level government officials from Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Vietnam who are involved in Customs, IPR enforcement and/or IP policy formulation. Among the participants, we had a Vice President (Deputy General Director) from Vietnam Ministry of Finance; Deputy Chiefs of Bureau of Litigation and Bureau of IP Policy of Cambodia Department of IP, Ministry of Commerce.

About the engagement

This is a paid engagement. This Japan - Singapore Partnership Programme for the 21st Century (JSPP21) x Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI) programme is sponsored by Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for participants who are accepted to attend. The programme is conducted by IPOS International and Japan Customs and Tariff Bureau.

About the training programme

The curated programme included IP rights and policy segments by the IPOS International faculty and IPOS colleagues; Japan’s experiences on the IP Rights border enforcement by the officers from Japan Customs; topics on civil and criminal enforcement of IP rights, emerging trends and business considerations in IP enforcement by legal practitioners, collective management organisations, service providers and private companies; attendance at the IP Week @ SG event; and learning journeys to multi-national company and a Singapore-based company to gain a better understanding of their commercial concerns pertaining to IP.

About Japan - Singapore Partnership Programme for the 21st Century (JSPP21)

As countries whose prime resources are their people, Singapore and Japan believe that human resource development is important for economic and social progress. With this mutual understanding, Singapore and Japan signed a Memorandum of Understanding in January 1994 to train participants from developing countries by sharing each country’s expertise and experience from their economic development under the Japan - Singapore Partnership Programme (JSPP).

With a view to enhancing ASEAN integration and sharing the two countries’ experience in their areas of expertise, both governments recognised, as areas of priority, training and capacity building for third countries in the fields of (a) security and peace, (b) addressing vulnerability, (c) private sector development, (d) connectivity, and (e) smart initiatives. Since 1994, Singapore and Japan have implemented close to 400 training courses for more than 6,500 participants in diverse fields such as public governance, trade promotion, climate change and environment, community policing, disaster management, maritime navigation, tourism, and urban planning.

About Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI)

The Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI) was launched by then Singapore Prime Minister (PM) Goh Chok Tong at the 4^th ASEAN Informal Summit in 2000 to narrow the development gap between ASEAN-6 and Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam (CLMV) and to support ASEAN integration and community building.  To date, Singapore has made four pledges totalling about S$170 million to the IAI.

About JSPP21 X IAI

Since 2019, Singapore and Japan have agreed to run courses under the joint framework of JSPP21 and IAI. Participants may benefit from the pooled resources of both programmes and learn from the experiences of both countries.