Harnessing the knowledge commons for open innovation

For companies, innovation is key to succeed in a global market. Therefore, innovation system development must be seen as a crucial part of economic development and trade promotion in emerging & developing countries. However, current international regimes on intellectual property rights (IPR) increasingly impose higher standards of IPR-protection at the expense of developing countries. As a consequence, increasing costs for licenses or royalties in key areas like IT, health, agriculture and renewable energy hamper the development of the private sector in Africa and beyond. Local innovation is at risk, as researchers and enterprises lack access to innovation-relevant information and open learning. In this context, the knowledge commons provides alternative opportunities for open local innovation and global collaboration.

commons@ip web portal: www.inwent.org/train4trade/

About commons@ip

As part of InWEnt's capacity building program Train for Trade, commons@ip focuses on the interaction of intellectual property rights and open innovation, the knowledge commons, open licences and collaborative innovation in Africa. It provides capacity building and networking on the following issues:

• Equipping private and public sector in Southern Africa with key knowledge on how the knowledge commons can be harnessed for open innovation
• Fostering a more enabling legal environment for open innovation across the region, and mapping trade policy impacts on knowledge for innovation
• Collaboration for open innovation & international exchange of private sector actors
Objective:
Harnessing the knowledge commons for open innovation in the SADC region
Region of implementation: Southern Africa (SADC)

Beneficiaries:
Small and medium-sized enterprises, IPR experts, private sector and its constitutional bodies, civil society

Duration: 2010 - 2012

Programme Components

(1) Networking of African experts on intellectual property rights around the issue of open innovation and dialogue with private sector and other stakeholders

(2) Advanced training on developing national versions of international open licences

(3) Exchange between like-minded countries and regions such as South Africa, India and Brazil

Programme Scope and Partners

German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)

International Development Research Centre (IDRC)