Mount Kenya University hosted a dynamic one-day workshop on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) on 1st March 2024. The event aimed to instill a deeper appreciation for the significance of IPR in today’s competitive landscape, attracting over 60 representatives from every faculty and innovations incubated at the university’s innovation and incubation centre.

In his opening remarks, the Principal, College of Graduate Studies and Research Dr. Henry Yatich sensitized participants on university Intellectual Property Policy which is critical in providing guidelines on issues that are pertinent in research activities and commercialization of research findings

Mr. Fred Otswong’o, a patent attorney under Fred Otswong’o & IP associates guided participants through four insightful sessions covering patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets, Intellectual property rights management in academic, challenges and opportunities for patenting in Kenya and ethics of intellectual property rights.

According to Donatus Njoroge, the Head, Innovations, Intellectual Property and Community Engagement, the workshop left participants not only well-informed but also imbued with a heightened sense of responsibility toward safeguarding intellectual property.