The UAE’s Ministry of Economy launched today a new roadmap for Green Intellectual Property (IP) that seeks to foster innovation, accelerate technology localization and develop new projects in the new economy, environmental sustainability and circular economy.
The three-month roadmap seeks to strengthen the competitiveness of the UAE’s intellectual property landscape and contribute to its progress and prosperity, supporting the country’s directives to transition to a circular economy.
“The UAE has succeeded in adopting qualitative initiatives and projects for the intellectual property sector, positioning it as one of the key pillars for building a strong and sustainable national economy. Building further on this progress, today we are witnessing a new milestone in the development of this key sector,” stated Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy and Chairman of the UAE Circular Economy Council.
Enhancing UAE’s attractiveness to sustainable innovations
Bin Touq explained that the Green Intellectual Property roadmap is a new step in the UAE’s efforts to raise awareness about the importance of adopting green technology and innovation to provide superior services and products that serve the community. The roadmap also aims to bolster the UAE’s attractiveness to green and sustainable innovations. These efforts help consolidate the country’s position among the most innovative countries globally, in line with the ‘We the UAE 2031’ vision.
“The new roadmap for Green IP is particularly important as it coincides with the launch of this year’s Innovation Month. We will collaborate with local environmental stakeholders in the country and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) to implement all the objectives of this roadmap, providing more enablers and opportunities to motivate inventors and creators to develop sustainable innovations and projects in critical economic areas and sectors,” he added.
Promoting adoption of leading digital solutions
For his part, H.E. Abdulla Ahmed Al Saleh, the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Economy, explained that the UAE’s new Green Intellectual Property roadmap aims to promote the adoption of leading digital solutions and advanced technology by individuals, organizations and companies to produce sustainable products and services that contribute to environmental conservation.
“Following this roadmap, we are keen to forge new partnerships with the academia and research centers to integrate IP into sustainable innovations and protect the rights of eco-friendly projects and innovations,” he added.
Al Saleh added that the roadmap will play a vital role in fostering innovation and creativity in sustainable sectors, bolstering the UAE’s competitiveness and elevating its standing in key global indicators, particularly in the Global Innovation Index (GII), where the UAE consistently maintains its regional and international prominence.
“This new roadmap supports the country’s efforts to enhance the UAE’s IP landscape in accordance with international standards. It aims to offer the utmost legal protection for innovations, while also meeting the growing demand for eco-friendly innovations locally and globally,” he added.
Initiative to raise sustainability patents’ share to 8 percent
The UAE’s Ministry of Economy seeks to accomplish key objectives under the new Green Intellectual Property roadmap, including the introduction of a program that will accelerate the registration of patents related to sustainable technologies and eco-friendly innovations.
It also aims to raise the percentage of patent registrations for sustainable and environmental innovations to 8 percent of the total number of patent registrations in the country.
Furthermore, it seeks to strengthen the legal frameworks for protecting patents related to environmental sustainability, particularly given the continued growth in the number of patent applications submitted in the country, which reached approximately 3,622 in 2024.
Al Saleh invited innovators, creators, entrepreneurs, institutions and universities to leverage the advantages offered by the new roadmap for Green Intellectual Property, highlighting the competitive environment that the UAE offers in terms of intellectual property and related activities.
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UAE tops Global Innovation Index
The UAE has made strides in advancing intellectual property by establishing a robust and competitive legislative framework to foster the growth of this crucial sector. This framework encompasses the issuance of laws on the Protection of Industrial Property Rights, Trademarks, and Copyrights and Neighbouring Rights.
The UAE is currently among the top countries globally in terms of intellectual property and innovation, ranking first in the region in the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2024.
