World Intellectual Property (IP) Day is observed annually on April 26 to emphasize the value of IP rights in fostering innovation and creativity. The emphasis of this year’s subject, “Women and IP: Accelerated Innovation and Creativity,” is on the problems that women face in advancing innovation and creativity. The WIPO Nigeria Office is holding an essay competition as part of this commemoration to encourage students to share their opinions.
The 2023 National IP Essay Competition is open to all enrolled undergraduate and graduate students from accredited tertiary institutions throughout Nigeria. The subject of the discussion, “Gender inclusiveness as a strategy to encourage innovation and creativity in Nigeria,” fits with the day’s overall theme. Participants will talk about the current obstacles that female artists, creatives, inventors, and business owners face when utilizing the IP system, as well as strategies for enticing more women to do so, the advantages of gender parity in the IP system, and policy suggestions to support gender inclusivity.
Eligibility requirements
All registered students, including undergraduate and graduate students from accredited tertiary institutions in Nigeria, including universities, colleges of education, polytechnics, and professional or vocational institutes, are eligible to participate in the WIPO competition.
WIPO National IP Essay Competition Advantages
The WIPO competition provides the winners with a number of benefits, such as scholarships for the WIPO’s Advanced International Certificate Course on IP Management, WIPO Summer School in South Africa and Nigeria, WIPO Certificates of Achievement, scholarships to enroll in any WIPO Distance Learning course, and scholarships for the Young Innovation Leaders Fellowship’s Africa Regional Edition. The top three essays will also be sent to WIPO for consideration of publication in the WIPO Magazine.
Process
Originality, structural flow, idea and expression clarity, grammatical precision and coherence, significance to the subject of intellectual property, and policy suggestions, proposals, and/or routes are among the factors taken into consideration while judging entries for the WIPO competition.
In April 2023, the WIPO competition’s winners will be revealed. WIPO Nigeria Office hopes that students will be inspired by this competition to consider the value of gender equality in Nigeria’s IP system and how it will affect the growth and future of the nation.
How to Apply
- Participants can submit their entries for the WIPO competition via email.
- The essay should be written in English, not exceed 1,500 words (excluding bibliography and references), prepared in font 12 Arial (Black), double-spaced, and pages numbered.
- Entries should be submitted in both Word and .pdf format, and must not include any pictures or other graphical illustrations.
- Entries must not indicate the author’s identity or affiliation. AI-generated works are not eligible for submission, and plagiarism will result in disqualification.
All entries should be made to: nigeria.office@wipo.int, with the subject title of the email initial.surname_WIPD23 Essay Competition (for example, G.Nduka_WIPD23 Essay Competition).
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