They said in Bangladesh, intellectual property rights (IPR) that include patents, designs, trademarks and copyrights and original designs of industrial products are being registered under the Patents and Designs Act, 1911, while the trademarks are being registered under the Trademarks Act, 1940.

They also underscored the need for integration of the existing intellectual property offices under one umbrella organisation namely 'Bangladesh Intellectual Property Office', which will have separate functional wings for patents, trademarks, designs, utility models and lay out designs of integrated circuits.

This organisation should also have a task of providing training on intellectual property, the speakers suggested.

The seminar on 'Encouraging Creativity and Awareness Building on IPR' was jointly organised by the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) and the Ministry of Industries at the Federation Bhaban, marking the World Intellectual Property Day yesterday.

FBCCI President Mir Nasir Hossain said the existing intellectual property related acts should be updated in line with the world standards in order to encourage more foreign direct investment.

He said although there are intellectual property related laws in the country, there is no proper implementation of the rules. "Besides, due to proper knowledge about IPR, legal steps are being taken in case of any violation of intellectual property acts, also on a limited scale. So, we have to create awareness about IPR among the people," he added.

Dr Shamser Ali, vice-chancellor of South East University, said the laws should be rigorous and more uniform in application of those.

"In the present era of globalisation, IPR has become an important issue. If we do not implement the IPR properly, it may bring jeopardy for us," he said.

Responding to the demand of updating the existing intellectual property related laws, Industries Secretary Nurul Amin said the ministry has already made new drafts on Patents and Designs Act and Trade marks Act and those are now in the law ministry for its vetting.

"The government will approve those acts in the early 2008," he hoped.

Mostafa Zabbar, co-chairman of FBCCI Standing Committee on IPR, presented the keynote paper at the seminar, while Mesbah Uddin, registrar of the Department of Patents, Designs and Trademarks, presented another paper.