URSB and Mountains of the Moon University Strengthen Partnership to Advance Innovation and Intellectual Property
Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB) continues to strengthen collaborations with institutions of higher learning to promote innovation, research commercialization, and intellectual property (IP) protection across Uganda.
During a recent engagement between URSB Patent Examiner Mr. Mutuba Huudu and Ms. Joanita Kataike ,a Senior Intellectual Property and Technical Officer at Mountains of the Moon University (MMU), the discussion focused on enhancing the use of intellectual property as a catalyst for research, innovation, and economic development.
The meeting highlighted the importance of utilizing the IP database to support research and innovation while encouraging university researchers and professors to prioritize patent protection for novel inventions before publishing their findings. This approach enables innovators to safeguard their intellectual assets, increase opportunities for commercialization, and contribute to Uganda’s socio-economic transformation through innovation.
Mr. Mutuba also shared opportunities that the university can leverage through URSB’s Intellectual Property Department, including the establishment of a Technology and Innovation Support Centre (TISC), identification of protectable intellectual property generated by the university, and the provision of technical support to enhance IP awareness among researchers, students, and innovators. These initiatives are expected to strengthen the university’s innovation ecosystem and promote the protection and commercialization of research outputs.
To operationalize the partnership, Mountains of the Moon University will formally write to the Registrar General of URSB to initiate the collaboration. URSB’s Intellectual Property team will thereafter engage university innovators, while both institutions agreed to hold virtual meetings where necessary and involve the Commissioner for Intellectual Property to institutionalize the partnership.
The collaboration demonstrates URSB’s commitment to building a knowledge-driven economy by supporting universities to transform research into protected intellectual property and commercially viable innovations.
