Egyptian Intellectual Property Authority (EGIPA) Chairman Hisham Azmi on Saturday highlighted the link between intellectual property (IP) and culture during the eighth meeting of the heads of intellectual property offices of BRICS countries in New Delhi.
Azmi delivered a lecture titled “Intellectual Property and Culture: From Heritage Protection to Future Innovation” during an open session and cultural programme held on the sidelines of the meeting.
He presented Egypt’s vision of the relationship between IP and culture, describing IP as a bridge linking the country’s rich cultural and civilisational heritage with contemporary creativity and future innovation.
Azmi said efforts should go beyond preserving cultural heritage to include documenting, digitising and responsibly making it accessible and reusable, while protecting intellectual property rights, attribution, content integrity, authenticity and sources.
He also highlighted the role of IP rights in transforming cultural and identity-based assets into economic and creative resources through copyrights, trademarks, industrial designs and geographical indications.
Such tools can create new market and investment opportunities while supporting local communities, he said.
Egypt’s creative economy — including film, music, publishing, literature and audiovisual production — is fundamentally based on IP assets, Azmi said, adding that protecting, managing, licensing and marketing those assets can generate economic value, jobs and exports while opening access to global markets.
The lecture also addressed the emerging intersection of IP, culture and artificial intelligence, including opportunities to digitise heritage and concerns over copyright, authenticity and the unauthorised use of cultural content in AI training.
Azmi concluded that linking IP with culture meant connecting Egypt’s past with its future by protecting heritage, empowering creativity and ensuring technology served culture.
