Proposals for the development of intellectual property, archival work, and legal education are presented

On 21 November, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reviewed a presentation outlining proposals to reform intellectual property, archival work, and legal education.

In recent years, extensive work has been carried out in the area of intellectual property. Fifty-one regulatory documents have been adopted, and Uzbekistan has acceded to eight international treaties. Intellectual property protection has been strengthened – administrative liability for violations in this sphere has been tightened, and criminal liability has been introduced. In the customs sphere, the ex officio procedure has been implemented, a mechanism for the destruction of counterfeit products has been established, and an annual “Month Without Counterfeit” campaign is held.

The number of intellectual property objects has exceeded 102,000, and protection has been expanded for both local brands abroad and foreign brands on the Uzbekistan market. Twenty-three geographical indications have been registered, including Samarkand bread, Chust knives, and Margilan adras.

As a result of the ongoing efforts, Uzbekistan has risen by 14 positions and is ranked 79th in the Global Innovation Index.

The sector’s development plans were reviewed during the presentation. In particular, in collaboration with the World Intellectual Property Organization, a National Strategy for the Development of Intellectual Property is planned.

According to the plans, the procedure for introducing amendments to patents and certificates will be simplified, and five composite and four proactive services will be introduced.

In addition, the level of intellectual property utilization will be taken into account in the Sustainability Rating of Business Entities.

Centers for supporting patenting, industrialization, and commercialization are expected to be established at all higher education institutions and research organizations. The National University will first introduce a program in “Intellectual Property Asset Management”, with four additional universities set to follow.

To encourage authors and specialists, it has been proposed to hold an annual competition, “Best Intellectual Property Objects”, in five categories. A special badge, “For Contribution to the Development of the Intellectual Property Sphere”, will be established and awarded on 26 April – World Intellectual Property Day.

The importance of strengthening the national system of geographical indications was emphasized. Particular attention was given to the need to register around seventy geographical indications and to enhance the value and export potential of national brands through accession to the Lisbon System.

During the discussion on modernizing archival work, it was noted that domestic archives currently store 16 million archival units, including 1.3 million especially valuable and rare documents. The archives of the Bukhara Emir’s chancellery and the Khiva Khanate’s chancellery have been included in UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register.

At the same time, the pace of document digitization is only 2 percent per year. It was noted that by 2030, the level of digitization of the archival collection must be increased to 60 percent, with all especially valuable and rare documents digitized in full.

To achieve this, plans include integrating sectoral information systems into the Unified National Archival Information System, introducing a system for recording and online tracking of documents using radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology, and applying artificial intelligence to document classification and recognition. The functions of district (city) archives will be transferred to regional archival administrations.

It was also proposed to create the “Shajara” information system. This new service will allow users to create their own family tree and search for information on birth, marriage, and death, as well as on distant relatives, based on genetic data.

Issues related to the further reform of legal education and legal science were examined.

At the Tashkent State University of Law, plans include introducing clinical and dual education. The share of practical training in the student curriculum will be increased to 50 percent, and legal clinics will be established in the areas of civil, criminal, and business law. In line with modern sectoral requirements, new academic programs, “Digital Law” and “Corporate Law and Governance”, will be launched.

It was also proposed to update the organizational structure of faculties based on the principle of “education – research – practice”, with departments gradually being transformed into divisions, and to establish a University Professors’ Council.

During the presentation, particular attention was paid to addressing legislative gaps and reducing regulatory burdens.

As part of this effort, approximately 800 obsolete regulatory documents will be revoked, 77 documents will be reviewed, and more than 15 excessive requirements for entrepreneurs will be eliminated to facilitate business activities. Through assessments of legal effectiveness, conflicting norms and legal gaps will be systematically removed.

The President emphasized the need to implement the proposed initiatives systematically and to further improve efficiency and convenience for the population and entrepreneurs in the areas under consideration.

UzA