The Hanoi Times - Vietnam is lagging behind other regional countries in the number of internationally-registered inventions and trademarks, according to an official from the Ministry of Science and Technology (MST).

MST Deputy Minister Nguyen Quan made this statement whilst speaking at an international seminar o­n intellectual property management held in the southern province of Binh Duong o­n Nov. 24.
During 2008, Vietnamese authorities received and processed 32,000 applications for the registration of trademarks and more than 2,000 applications for the patenting of new inventions, representing an annual increase of 15-20 percent over the previous year, Quan said.
However, the country has just 2,000 internationally-registered inventions and trademarks, much less than other regional countries, he said, adding that even the few Vietnamese trademarks and inventions that have been officially registered have failed to take advantage of this to protect their intellectual property rights, both domestically and internationally.
According to Quan, the implementation of intellectual property rights in the country faces numerous obstacles, including unsystematic legal documentation, weak financial mechanisms and human resources, as well as a massive market for fake products.
The seminar, co-organised by the MST and the Vietnam-Switzerland Project o­n intellectual property, attracted representatives from 50 provinces and cities nationwide.