Brand Owners Protection Group, Ministry of Economy organise training session to improve detection of illicit trade

The Brand Owners Protection Group (BPG), the largest non-profit organisation in the Gulf committed to combating counterfeit trade, in cooperation with the Ministry of Economy – Abu Dhabi, is staging a training session to enhance the skills of customs inspection officials in detecting illegal merchandise and distinguishing them from authentic branded products.

Set to kick off tomorrow, 25th of May, at the Movenpick Hotel in Dubai, the workshop is part of the BPG’s continuing efforts to uphold the protection of intellectual property (IP) rights in the GCC region.

The training session will be attended by up to 25 law enforcement officials from the Commercial Inspection Department from different branches of the Ministry of Economy in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Dubai, Fujairah, Ajman, Sharjah, Ras al Khaimah and Umm al Quwain. During the seminar, informative lectures will be given by leading intellectual property rights experts from various multinational companies including Nestlé, BMW, Nokia, Ford, Nike, Nissan, and HP.

Commenting on the announcement, Mr. Omar Shteiwi, Chairman of the Board at the BPG and Regional Intellectual Property Advisor for Nestlé Middle East, said, “We are very honoured to have the continuous support of the Ministry of Economy to our investments in the UAE as in this workshop we take another step in combating illicit trade and safeguarding the rights of our members as legitimate brand owners and investors. The success of the upcoming training session will be another achievement for the consumers as well as to our organisation in advancing the technical knowledge of law enforcement officials on properly detecting counterfeit goods and promptly report any detection to the brand owners in order to take the proper legal action in a proactive approach.”

The training session is in line the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the BPG and the Ministry of Economy in 2008, and is part of a series of workshops organised by the BPG in cooperation with various government bodies in the GCC. In 2009, the organisation held training sessions all across the United Arab Emirates and later in the past year entered Kuwait for the BPG’s inaugural workshop in the country. The group’s lectures encourage the involvement of both the government and the consumers in supporting the fight against illegal replicas of brand-name products.

In the past, the BPG has actively promoted awareness on the detrimental effects of the counterfeit industry on the regional economy with similar workshops and training sessions. Additionally, the non-profit organisation has made strides in bridging the gap between the private and public sectors and paving the way for efficient implementation of IP laws. Through its dedication to broadening the group’s anti-counterfeiting initiatives, the BPG has extended its intercontinental footprint by forming strategic alliances with giant intellectual property organisations such as the Kuwaiti Customs, China’s Quality Brands Protection Committee (QBPC) and Japan’s International Intellectual Property Protection Forum (IIPPF).