Chairman of Board of Intellectual Property Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan Kamran Imanov received the President of the Industrial Property Office of Slovakia Matus Medvec, who is visiting our country.

Welcoming the guest, K. Imanov briefly spoke about the history of the formation of the intellectual property system in Azerbaijan and said that as a result of institutional reforms in the country in 2018, the Intellectual Property Agency was established as a single state body that combines the competences in the field of copyright and industrial property. He informed the guest about the activities and functions of the Agency, which currently includes the Patent and Trademark ExaminationCenter, the Center for Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights and the Republican Scientific and Technical Library, and noted that recently by the decision of the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Azerbaijan on the basis of the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, the Center for Commercialization and Technology Transfer was established under the Intellectual Property Agency.

Emphasizing that on the basis of the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan dated January 6, 2021, the "Center for Analysis and Coordination of the Fourth Industrial Revolution" was established, he noted the impact of modern technologies on the intellectual property landscape and informed that the Intellectual Property Agency is actively involved in the activities of the Center, and Deputy Chairman of Board is a member of the Supervisory Board of the Center.

Giving information about the research conducted by the Agency on the role of the creative industry in the economy, Imanov said that the contribution of the creative sector in the country's economy and gross domestic product has been growing in recent years.

K.Imanov stressed the positive impact of the creation of a single body based on Douglas North's theory of neo-institutionalism on minimizing operating costs, as well as the role of the Agency in the commercialization and transfer of intellectual property.

Having exchanged views with the guest on the relationship between the level of protection of intellectual property rights and the level of economic development, K.Imanov spoke about the research conducted by the Agency in the field of correlation between them, as well as about the moments of intersection of copyright and industrial property. He said that he raised these issues in a video meeting with the Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Daren Tang on June 22 and suggested that they be discussed within WIPO.

K.Imanov said that as a result of the victory in the Patriotic War under the leadership of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of Azerbaijan, President Ilham Aliyev, our lands occupied by Armenia were liberated. He noted that the implementation of "smart city" and "smart village" projects, which include the results of innovation and intellectual activity in these areas, has already begun.

Expressing gratitude for the reception, Medvec said he was visiting our region for the first time. He said he was aware of Azerbaijan's achievements in the field of intellectual property, as well as the country's significant progress in international rankings. He said that work is currently implemented in Slovakia in the field of technology transfer and commercialization at universities and research institutes, and noted that they are interested in using the experience of our country in this area. M. Medvec invited his colleague K. Imanov to visit Slovakia.

K.Imanov thanked the Slovak guest for the high appreciation of the Agency's activities and touched upon the "National Project for Intellectual Property Policy in Universities and Research Institutions" implemented jointly with WIPO. He noted that technology transfer centers have been established in higher education institutions of the country with the support of the Agency, including the Department of Intellectual Property at Baku State University.

The issues of cooperation, organization of joint events, training visits were also discussed at the meeting.