New Tech-Transfer Law May Hasten Biotech Commercialization In The Philippines

The country beefs up commercialization of government-funded technologies through the enactment of the Philippine Technology Transfer Act of 2009, signed recently by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. The passing of this key legislation will benefit public-sector R&D, such as biotechnology, and will also encourage local scientists to transfer new technologies from laboratory to the market.

Several R&D efforts in the Philippine government institutions and state colleges and universities remain to be untapped, and commercialization of these technologies is hampered due to lack of well-defined policy and insufficient government investment on technology transfer and incubation. This resulted to the few patent applications and lower number of patent grants in government R&D institutions.

Department of Science and Technology Secretary Estrella Alabastro affirmed that the law has mandated the grant of incentives to scientists in the form of royalties, which in turn, allows them to have venture capital for start-up companies. It also speeds-up the process of technology commercialization systematically and broadens intellectual property assertions in the country.

For related information regarding this article, visit http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=24453:tech-transfer-law-seen-to-boost-rad-economy&catid=23:topnews&Itemid=58 For additional updates on biotechnology in the Philippines send an e-mail to bic@agri.searca.org or visit the SEARCA Biotechnology Information Center website at http://www.bic.searca.org/.