VICTORIA, Seychelles — The African Regional Intellectual Property Organisation, in collaboration with the Seychelles Registration Division and the University of Seychelles, has hosted its first Intellectual Property seminar at the university campus in Anse Royale, strengthening Seychelles’ efforts to safeguard academic research through intellectual property protection. The two-day seminar brings together key stakeholders in academia and IP to promote the creation, protection, and commercialisation of research outputs.
UniSey currently operates four research institutes covering the Blue Economy, Peace and Diplomacy, Education and Socioeconomic Research, and the Island Biodiversity Centre, alongside the UniSey Centre for Innovation. The seminar supports Seychelles’ ongoing efforts to enhance its IP system, including establishing a national IP office mandated to administer industrial property rights. Dr Penda Choppy, director of the Creole Language and Culture Research Institute, acknowledged varying levels of awareness among researchers regarding IP rights.
Outule Rapuleng, head of the Aripo Academy, outlined the seminar’s expected outcomes, expressing hope that professors and researchers will discover methods to safeguard their intellectual property. He stressed the importance of protecting UniSey’s significant research output from unlawful use and commended Seychelles for its commitment to improving its IP systems, noting the country’s role as a signatory to the Lusaka Agreement.
Professor Murray Duncan from UniSey’s department of Environmental Sciences described the seminar as timely and valuable, highlighting the importance of clarifying data ownership given that statistics are collected from diverse stakeholders including government agencies, NGOs, and consultants. He noted UniSey would benefit from learning to establish structures for data ownership and determining who has immediate access to databases.
The seminar covered major topics on the role of IP in promoting innovation, safeguarding research, and supporting national development. Seychelles continues to strengthen its intellectual property frameworks as part of broader efforts to enhance academic and research environments.
Aripo and UniSey’s collaboration marks an important step in protecting Seychelles’ growing research output.
