Ukraine has good copyright laws, but few people know about them or use them, said Mykola Paladiy, head of the Intellectual Property Department at the Education and Science Ministry.
"You can ask any law professor in any university and they will fail this copyright exam," he said at a press conference on July 1.
He said Ukraine has 10 laws on intellectual property and recognizes 23 international agreements in the copyright sector, making the legislation base similar to that of the European countries.
But the universities are lagging behind, failing to educate lawyers and other specialists who could make the use of these laws more effective in the nation. As a result, many of its inventions end up making money elsewhere in the world.
"Ukraine has a great intellectual culture, the only thing you need is to learn how to convert knowledge and copyright to the commercial product", said Francis Gurry, head of The World Intellectual Property Organization, at the same press conference.
Gurry came to Ukraine to sign a three-year plan to raise awareness of copyright laws among practicing lawyers, judges and university teachers.
"The goal of our visit to Ukraine was to liven the relationship between Ukraine and the World Intellectual Property Organization. I can say we are on the right way," he said.
