University of Asia Pacific and DPDT Forge Partnership to Enhance IP Protection and Innovation Support

On Tuesday, 7 July 2026, the University of Asia Pacific (UAP) and the Department of Patents, Industrial Designs and Trademarks (DPDT), operating under Bangladesh’s Ministry of Industries, formalized a memorandum of understanding (MoU) aimed at enhancing intellectual property protection, fostering innovation, and supporting patent registration among researchers.

The signing ceremony took place in the Vice-Chancellor’s Conference Room at UAP, followed by a programme and training session focused on intellectual property rights and patent processes.

A key agenda item discussed during the meeting was the establishment of a Technology and Innovation Support Centre at UAP. This centre is designed to bolster innovation support by facilitating access to patent information and technology resources, thereby aiding researchers in navigating the patent landscape.

Md Jahangir Hossain, Director General of DPDT, expressed the department’s keen interest in setting up a support office within UAP. He emphasized that this office would provide guidance on patent registration, industrial designs, and trademarks, strengthening the university’s research and innovation ecosystem.

He highlighted that the proposed Technology and Innovation Support Centre would offer technical support and access to global patent databases, which are critical for advancing research and protecting intellectual property.

Md Jahangir Hossain also commended UAP’s modern pharmacy laboratories and its active academia-industry collaborations. He underscored the importance of intellectual property protection as a foundation for innovation, business development, and broader economic growth.

Professor Dr Mohammad Shahriar, Dean of the School of Pharmacy at UAP, remarked that the MoU would enhance research and innovation by raising awareness about intellectual property and facilitating patent protection for faculty and researchers.

Adding to the discourse, Professor Dr Md Selim Reza, Dean of the Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Dhaka, encouraged UAP to develop its own intellectual property policy. He cited examples from countries like Malaysia and Indonesia, which have benefited from comprehensive IP frameworks.

Professor Reza also noted that the MoU would enable the organization of seminars, training programmes, and capacity-building initiatives to further intellectual property knowledge.

Professor Dr Abu Sayeed M Ahmed, Dean of the School of Environmental Science and Design at UAP, emphasized the value of inter-university collaboration through memoranda of agreement. Such partnerships would promote research, training, knowledge exchange, and shared use of laboratory facilities.

Professor Dr MA Baqui Khalili, Dean of the School of Business at UAP, highlighted that the partnership would assist researchers in better understanding patents, industrial designs, and trademarks, thereby protecting their innovations more effectively.

In his concluding remarks, Professor Dr Mohiuddin Ahmed Bhuiyan, Acting Vice-Chancellor of UAP, expressed gratitude to Md Jahangir Hossain and Md Habibur Rahman, Deputy Director of Patents at DPDT, for their initiative to establish a departmental support office at the university.

Professor Bhuiyan also welcomed a proposed memorandum of agreement between UAP and the University of Dhaka. He suggested introducing laboratory and research facility exchange programmes under corporate social responsibility initiatives, coinciding with UAP’s upcoming 30th anniversary celebrations.

The programme was conducted by Brigadier General (Retired) Professor Dr AKM Nazrul Islam, Registrar of UAP. Attendees included Professor Dr Tanveer Ferdous Saeed, Director of the Institute of Research, Innovation and Development at UAP; Dr Zabun Nahar, Head of the Department of Pharmacy; Md Habibur Rahman, Deputy Director of Patents at DPDT; Dr Shihab Uddin Ahmad, Assistant Professor of Pharmacy; and Mahammad Ferdaus, Assistant Director of the Institute of Research, Innovation and Development.

Prior to the signing, Md Jahangir Hossain and Md Habibur Rahman conducted a training session on patents and intellectual property, attended by faculty representatives from all academic departments at UAP.

This collaboration marks a significant step toward strengthening the intellectual property infrastructure within Bangladesh’s academic sector, promoting innovation, and supporting researchers in safeguarding their inventions and creative works.