Business & Money | Wednesday 2 November, 2016 5:29 pm |

In an attempt to encourage students to organize integrated campaigns to raise awareness of the dangers of counterfeit goods, Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Department of Dubai Customs has launched the "Intellectual Property Ambassadors Initiative”. A distinguished student is picked from every school and university to be an ambassador for intellectual property that is assigned to oversee all activities designed for the dissemination of intellectual property culture in coordination with IPR Department.

The first phase of this promising initiative started with 10 ambassadors of intellectual property being selected from different Dubai-based schools, including Ibn al-Haytham, Maria Al Qibtia, Khalil bin Ahmed, Al-Manhal, Dhuhra, Al Ittihad Private School, Cambridge, JSS International School, Gulf Indian High School, Central School, and Delhi Private School.

Commenting on the new initiative, Saeed Al Tayer, Executive Director of Policies and Legislation Division at Dubai Customs, said, "We are keen to launch new initiatives to stimulate creativity and innovation among young generations. This fulfills the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to spread the culture of creativity and innovation in society. We aim to make all segments of the local community real partners in development towards achieving the goals of UAE Vision 2021 and Dubai Plan 2021.”

Al Tayer added, "Dubai Customs seeks to enhance the engagement of school and university students in the community's efforts to combat the spread of IPR-infringing goods through a comprehensive awareness on the damages caused by counterfeits on public health and their negative impact on the competitiveness of our national economy. This propels us to double our efforts constantly in order to address the issue of commercial fraud to protect our society. By so doing, we can secure a good business environment that free from counterfeit goods to help consolidate the gains traders and investors get by choosing Dubai as their preferred destination for doing business. This will eventually boost the emirate’s status as a regional and global hub for trade and international investment."

On his part, Yousef Ozair Mubarak, Director of IPR Department, said, “The Intellectual Property Ambassadors initiative aims to prepare a new generation of creators and innovators through the involvement of school and university students in the ongoing efforts to ensure comprehensive social development nationwide.”

Mubarak stated that the initiative would encourage students to come up with fresh ideas that can very useful in organizing efficient awareness and education campaigns about IPR protection. “The activities to be overseen by our young ‘Intellectual Property Ambassadors’ will include seminars and presentations to disseminate the latest information on the dangers of counterfeit goods, whether on public health, environment or economy. Participants in the initiative will also help motivate students in schools and universities to develop innovations for detecting and curbing counterfeit products.”

The new initiative is also geared toward further building capabilities of school and university students in intellectual property protection, added Mubarak.

“This adds up to previous efforts undertaken by Dubai Customs, especially targeting raising awareness of students and amplifying their community involvement in the fight against IP crimes,” he said.

It is worth noting that Dubai Customs has recently launched the ninth cycle of its now very popular Intellectual Property Award for Schools and Universities across the UAE for the academic year 2016-2017. Since its inception in 2008, the competition has achieved great success in terms of students’ participation, and promoting the level of awareness in schools and universities about the protection of intellectual property rights. Students from 130 schools and 22 universities contended for the nationwide IP award between 2008 and 2015, with a total number of beneficiaries touching 88,000.