SciTech events to be held at first APEC SOM

A number of science and technology events will be held during the first Senior Officials’ Meeting of APEC (SOM-1) in Nha Trang city, in the south central province of Khanh Hoa, on February 18-21.

They include the ninth APEC Policy Partnership on Science Technology and Innovation Meeting (PPSTI-9), the first APEC Subcommittee on Standards and Conformance (SCSC-1), and the 44th APEC Intellectual Property Expert Group (IPEG-44).

A Vietnamese delegation led by Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Tran Quoc Khanh attends the aforesaid meetings.

At the PPSTI-9, Vietnam moves to present its new proposals on developing innovative business ecosystem and update an underway project on prompting trade and investment cooperation for scientific research products, and technology in some priority fields in foreign markets through 2020, as well as deliver information relating to the APEC Science Prize for Innovation, Research and Education (ASPIRE).

Within the framework of SCSC-1, participants will seek to boost regional trade facilitation and digital economy, while emphasising Good Regulatory Practice (GRP) with focus on the development of national quality infrastructure and priorities such as food safety, environmental protection, and smart city development.

Delegates will also discuss technical measures to support micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises to join the global supply chain.

As Chair of the SCSC 2017, Vietnam proactively put forth an initiative on GRP to share the country’s experience in building smart urban areas in the region.

At the IPEG-44, the panels will seek to increase dialogues on intellectual property policies, improve the efficiency of the IP protection system, and implement effectively the World Trade Organization (WTO)’s Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) and Collective Action Plan (CAP) to achieve the Bogor targets of trade and investment liberalisation by 2020.

Vietnamese delegates are scheduled to make two presentations at the event, focusing on procedures to handle international registration of trademark under the Madrid system, and the innovation activities in the country, as well as have bilateral meetings with partners from other APEC member economies to exchange future IP collaboration on the sideslines of the event.

VNA