Pres. Ali signals IP reform push

May 26, 2026 News

…as ECLAC warns Caribbean risks missing innovation gains

(Kaieteur News) – As Irfaan Ali signals the need for national consultations on intellectual property reform, a new regional study by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean is underscoring why the issue may be increasingly urgent for countries like Guyana. The report argues that stronger intellectual property frameworks, linked to broader development policies, can drive higher wages, employment and industrial growth, while warning that weak innovation systems continue to leave Latin America and the Caribbean dependent on foreign patents and external economic control.

Speaking at a news conference last week, President who was asked to comment on the issue said consultations are needed. “We have to have some consultation as to what form it will take. And I’m saying that maybe it’s time we start those consultations, because I want to hear Guyana and everyone on this issue. I feel strongly about it,” the president stated.

President Dr. Irfaan Ali

He floated that consultations on intellectual property reform could be brought forward and possibly incorporated into broader discussions on social media regulation and governance.

“So, maybe we should move this up on the agenda and start a consultation on that. So maybe we can do the social media consultation on this one together,” he told the press.

Ali’s comments were made days after the Economic Commission on Latin America and the Caribbean and the EPO presented a joint study titled, harnessing intellectual property for development: Opportunities and challenges for Latin America and the Caribbean, which offers new evidence on the relationship between the protection of intellectual property and economic activity in nine of the region’s countries: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay.

The publication focuses on the manufacturing industry, as it accounts for almost all patenting activity in Latin America and the Caribbean and offers comparable data across countries on employment, value added, wages and trade.

According to the report, intellectual property-intensive manufacturing industries generate 12.4% of formal manufacturing employment and 13.0% of the sector’s value added. They also pay wages that are 32.1% higher. However, according to the study, Latin America and the Caribbean’s structural challenges limit the region’s ability to capture the benefits of innovation. As a result, more than 85% of patent applications in Latin America and the Caribbean originate from outside the region, and intellectual property-intensive industries account for just 9% of exports and 19% of imports.

Investment in research and development (R&D) remains comparatively low in Latin America and the Caribbean and is financed primarily by the public sector and executed in the academic sphere, the document states.

“The central message of the joint study is that intellectual property (IP) policy cannot operate in isolation. To unlock its full economic benefit, and to minimize frictions, IP must be integrated into broader productive development policies. The strategic advantages of intellectual property are most fully realized when supported by strong research capabilities, effective technology transfer mechanisms, access to scale-up finance, deep university-industry linkages, and broader policies aimed at production transformation,” the text concludes.

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Dr. Irfaan Ali, ECLAC, innovation gains, intellectual property, IP reform

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