WIPO trains Institute’s officers on processing of international patent applications
The Institute, in conjunction with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), hosted a training aimed at improving the processing of international patent applications.
The two-day Training on Patent Co-operation Treaty (PCT) on Receiving Office’s Functions and ePCT System for applicants was held at the PrideInn Azure, Westlands in Nairobi from 20th to 21st November 2024. The training drew participants from the Institute, IP Agents and select inventors.
Mr. John Onyango, the Managing Director, said the Institute, as a receiving office for the international patent applications, has been actively working with our various stakeholders, including them WIPO, in strengthening Kenya’s intellectual property framework, ensuring its systems and processes align with the international standards while meeting its local and international clients’ needs.
“We, however, acknowledge that WIPO’s Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) Operations and Finance Divisions have been encountering some challenges when handling the international applications filed in Kenya,” said Mr Onyango in a speech read on his behalf by Mr. Stephen Ng'eno, the Deputy Managing Director, Technical Services.
He hailed WIPO, a specialist United Nations (UN) Agency on intellectual property, for facilitating the Training saying it will boost the Institute’s capacity to process the applications.
He said WIPO’s facilitators will help identify some of the challenges that ours officers have been facing in processing the international patent applications and guide us on how to overcome them.
The Training was facilitated by WIPO’s Ms. ‘Nyalleng Pii, a Senior Program Officer, Offices Services Section, PCT International Cooperation Division, and Mr. Yinghua Chen, Solutions Delivery and Support Officer, Technical Cooperation Section, PCT International Cooperation Division.
The ePCT platform is a user friendly tool for applicants and receiving offices to enable the filing of international applications to be a seamless process.