The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) welcomes this week World
Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Director General Daren Tang to the Philippines
for a series of high-level engagements that underscore the country’s growing role as a
hub for innovation, creativity and international cooperation in intellectual property (IP).
As the country’s lead agency for IP, IPOPHL is increasingly serving as a bridge between
the Philippine innovation ecosystem and the global IP community, bringing together
institutions and sectors to ensure that IP protection can translate into greater global
opportunities for Filipino innovators, creators, researchers, entrepreneurs and
businesses.
Former and current IPOPHL Directors General (from left to right) Ricardo R. Blancaflor, Adrian S. Cristobal Jr., Emma C. Francisco, Teodoro C. Pascua, Brigitte M. Da Costa-Villaluz, Josephine R. Santiago and Rowel S. Barba gather during the visit of WIPO Director General Daren Tang (center) to the Philippines, underscoring the continuity of the country’s intellectual property leadership and its longstanding partnership with WIPO.
During his visit, DG Tang will engage with key Philippine government institutions,
including the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Economy, Planning
and Development (DEPDev), Department of Science and Technology (DOST),
Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Foreign
Affairs (DFA) and the Supreme Court of the Philippines.
The WIPO Director General will also engage with representatives of the Philippine
creative economy and the broader IP community, providing opportunities to discuss how
creators, businesses, researchers and innovators can capture greater value from their
intellectual assets.
At the regional level, DG Tang will also participate in engagements with ASEAN economic
leaders, further highlighting the Philippines’ contribution to strengthening IP cooperation
within the region.
Growing IP momentum
DG Tang’s visit comes on the heels of several developments highlighting the Philippines’
growing engagement with WIPO and the broader global innovation ecosystem.
The Philippines was featured prominently in WIPO’s World Intangible Investment
Highlights 2026, which identified the country as having the third-fastest growth in
intangible investment among the 15 largest economies in the study, with intangible
investment growing by 4.6 percent in its latest available year. The report also marked the
first time the Philippines was included in the cross-country estimates.
The country was also selected as WIPO’s first pilot country for its Creative Economy Data
Model (CEDM), leading to the development of the Philippines’ first Creative Ecosystem
National Diagnostic Report. The report found that the country is building robust creative
industries that contributed 7.8% to the country’s gross domestic product and 17.8% of
total employment in 2025.
Earlier this year, the Philippines further elevated its role in global IP policymaking by
assuming chairship over the 68th Series of Meetings of the WIPO Assemblies of Member
States, where the country presided over discussions of the organization’s work and future
policy directions.
The country’s innovation momentum is likewise reflected in the Global Innovation Index
(GII), where the Philippines has been recognized as one of the most consistent innovation
climbers in its region, breaking into the global top 50 in the 2025 edition.
The visit also comes following the recently concluded 2026 Filipinnovation Awards where
President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. urged Filipino innovators to continue developing
solutions to modern challenges facing the country. The call aligns with the administration’s recognition of innovation as a key driver for national development under the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028.
For IPOPHL Director General Teodoro C. Pascua, the visit is “an opportunity to deepen
its longstanding partnership with WIPO and bring Philippine priorities, experiences and
homegrown initiatives into global IP discussions.”
“This is an important moment for Philippine IP. The Philippines is no longer simply
observing global conversations on innovation and IP. We are increasingly contributing to
and helping shape them,” DG Pascua said. (Janina Lim, Information Officer III)
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