Country Focus: Morocco's Vision 2010

The initiative by King Mohamed VI of Morocco in support of sustainable development includes the opportunity for intellectual property (IP) to contribute to economic, cultural and social development. Morocco’s economic environment is evolving fast, and the country’s policy-makers believe that a balanced, strong IP system should boost the competitiveness of Moroccan enterprises and stimulate investment. The government has identified, for example, the expanding tourism and handicraft sector as one of many areas that could benefit substantially from the tools of the IP system. Seeking to follow the path of IP success stories such as Singapore, Korea and Malaysia the government is working to develop a clear IP strategy within the framework of its national plan for development.

The Moroccan Ministry of Trade and Industry, which oversees the industrial property office, has set objectives aimed at reinforcing the ability of Morocco’s commercial and industrial sector to operate in world markets, at creating a more competitive business environment, and at attracting foreign investment. A strategic plan, "Vision 2010 for Industrial Property and Commerce," drawn up by the Moroccan Industrial and Commercial Property Office (OMPIC - Office marocain de la propriété industrielle et commerciale) sets out how these objectives are to be reached, and an industrial property culture created in Moroccan enterprises.

OMPIC performs similar task and services to most industrial property offices, registering and issuing titles for patents, trademarks and industrial designs as well as company names. It has a "front-office" with individual specialized booths to respond to clients and process files in each of these areas. However, OMPIC is also responsible for the broader strategic objectives of promoting the industrial property system and for implementation of the Vision 2010 plan.

Vision 2010 addresses five main areas: the legal environment, innovation and monitoring technology, marketing and communication, and organizational structure and human resources. It is a two-phase plan, the first phase runs from 2005 to 2007 and second will run from 2008 to 2010.

The plan sets specific performance indicators in terms of industrial property titles, which enable OMPIC to gauge the effectiveness of its actions and to make corrections where necessary. The performance indicators include:

* Patents - an...