President Reviews Plans for Developing Intellectual Property, Archival Work and Legal Education

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — On 21 November, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reviewed proposals for reforming the fields of intellectual property, archiving and legal education.

In recent years, extensive work has been carried out in the area of intellectual property.

Fifty-one regulatory decisions have been adopted, and Uzbekistan has joined eight international treaties. Intellectual property protection has been strengthened: administrative and criminal liability has been introduced for violations, “ex officio” procedures have been implemented in the customs sphere, a procedure for destroying counterfeit products has been established, and an annual Anti-Counterfeit Month is now held.

The number of registered intellectual property objects has exceeded 102,000.

Protection has expanded for both domestic brands abroad and foreign brands on the local market. Twenty-three geographical indications have been registered, including Samarkand bread, Chust knives and Margilan adras. Thanks to these efforts, Uzbekistan rose 14 positions in the Global Innovation Index, reaching 79th place.

Plans for the near future include developing a National Strategy for the development of the sector together with the World Intellectual Property Organization, simplifying procedures for amending patents and certificates, and introducing five composite and four proactive services. The level of intellectual property use will be reflected in the Business Sustainability Rating.

All higher education institutions and research organizations are expected to establish centers for supporting patenting, industrial implementation and commercialization. At the National University, and subsequently four other universities, a new program in “Intellectual Property Management” will be launched.

To encourage authors and specialists, an annual competition titled “Best Intellectual Property Objects” will be introduced in five categories. A badge of honor, “For Contribution to the Development of Intellectual Property,” will also be established and awarded on 26 April, World Intellectual Property Day.

Special attention is being given to strengthening the system of national geographical indications; around seventy new indications are planned for registration to enhance the value and export potential of national brands, including accession to the Lisbon System.

Regarding the archival sector, national archives currently hold 16 million storage units, including 1.3 million particularly valuable and rare documents. The archives of the Bukhara Emir’s chancellery and the Khiva Khanate’s chancellery have been added to UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register.

However, the digitization rate remains only 2 percent per year. By 2030, the goal is to increase the digitization level of the archival fund to 60 percent and to fully digitize especially valuable documents. To achieve this, sectoral information systems will be integrated into a Unified National Archival Information System, a system for accounting and online tracking of documents using RFID will be introduced, and artificial intelligence will be used for document classification and recognition. The functions of district and city archives will be transferred to regional departments.

Plans also include the creation of an information system called “Shajara,” which will allow users to build a family tree and obtain information about relatives — including birth, marriage and death records — based on genetic data.

In the field of legal education and research, clinical and dual education will be introduced at Tashkent State University of Law. Practical training for students will be increased to 50 percent, and legal clinics in civil, criminal and business law will be established.

New programs in “Digital Law” and “Corporate Law and Governance” will be launched.

The organizational structure of faculties will be updated according to the “education – research – practice” model, departments will gradually be transformed into divisions, and a University Professors’ Council will be created.

The presentation also discussed eliminating gaps in legislation and reducing regulatory burdens.

Around 800 outdated regulatory documents are expected to be repealed, 77 documents revised, and more than 15 excessive requirements for businesses eliminated. The effectiveness of laws will be systematically assessed to remove conflicting norms and legal gaps.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev emphasized the need for the systematic implementation of all proposed initiatives, improving institutional efficiency, and creating convenient conditions for citizens and entrepreneurs.