Kamil Idris- A Sudan Politician and Intellectual Property Expert

Intellectual property is a term that elicits controversy in trade deals today as countries try to protect their manufacturing industries. Technologies that they use deserve to be protected at all cost and as a result, the type of trade deals they sign must facilitate fair competition. Intellectual property theft is considered a crime. Countries have been putting stringent measures that will curb the rise of intellectual property theft. Once a country steals a certain technology from the other, it means that it will join the list of producers for that product. However, this should not be the case in a fair platform. Every country should be allowed to deal with what they produce.

Intellectual property refers to things such as logos, designs, brands, images and inventions. To protect an intellectual property means that you are the creator of that product and no one else should use exactly the same method to create a similar product. The intention is to protect the originality of products. Intellectual property is protected through copyrights, trademarks or patents. According to the World Intellectual Property Organization, the main purpose of intellectual property is to allow innovation to flourish. We do not want a world where everyone is copying from the other. It will be a recipe for disaster and even a bad economic environment.

Two countries that have been at the centre of recent controversy on this matter is China and the United States. The U.S claims that China has been using underhand methods to steal intellectual property from the United States. Some of the tactics used by China include cyber-attacks to steal trade agreements as well as creating a free environment for American businesses to transfer their technology to China.

Among the people who understand this matter clearly is Kamil Idris. He is an expert on the matter of intellectual property. He has been at the helm of WIPO for ten years. So, if it’s about understanding the industry, then no one does better than Kamil Idris. Kamil has authored a book entitled Intellectual Property a Power Tool for Economic Growth which addresses the link between economics and intellectual property. Kamil Idris is also a politician in Sudan. In 2010, he vied for the seat of Sudan President.