SINGAPORE: A new programme by the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) and the Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA) will train professionals to become qualified patent agents.
The Professional Conversion programme for trainee agents aims to train up to 70 professionals in the next two years to meet the growing manpower needs of the intellectual property (IP) sector, said WDA in a news release on Tuesday (Apr 7).
The trainees will first get hired or placed with participating companies, and they will receive subsidised IP training. The trainees will be required to practice what they have learnt for a period of time after their formal training.
“This larger core of qualified patent agents will help Singapore effectively serve the increasing demand for patent procurement services in the region, both from local enterprises and international companies,” said WDA. There are currently more than 100,000 people involved in the intellectual property sector.
Participating employers will receive funding for trainee-related expenses, which include a 70 per cent course fee grant capped at S$7,350, and monthly training allowance capped at S$2,000 per trainee or S$4,000 per mature worker trainee, aged 40 years and above, for six months.
IPOS and WDA are also exploring options to offer and subsidise preparatory courses for those sitting for the Patent Agents Qualifying Examination (PAQE) this year.
Over the past decade, Singapore has seen a spike in overall patent filings by more than 30 per cent, from 7,908 in 2003 to 10,312 in 2014, said WDA.
news source & image credits: channelnewsasia.com
