In April this year, the State Agency on Intellectual Property (AGEPI) started the campaign on training of librarians in the field of intellectual property (IP). In the campaign will be organized a series of information and training seminars, which will take place in district public libraries and regional training Centers created in the pilot project of the IREX Moldova – Novateca program. The main objective of the proposed seminars is to consolidate librarians’ knowledge in the field of IP and to develop new consulting and IP promotion services in public libraries.

Thus, on 23 April and 14 May this year, AGEPI organized information and training seminars in the public libraries of the towns Leova and Orhei attended by 80 librarians from the villages of the districts concerned. They were familiarized with the most relevant elements of the national intellectual property protection system, heard with interest the information provided by the AGEPI specialists on the mechanisms of protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights and actively participated in the discussions on the topics. At the same time, in the seminars were also organized practical lessons on search in national and international databases, other information sources in the field of intellectual property and were distributed information materials (books, magazines, brochures, leaflets) in the field of intellectual property, edited by AGEPI.

Finally, participants in the seminar were given Certificates of training and were distributed information materials in the field of intellectual property.

In a next stage, AGEPI will assist the concerned district public libraries, that have the necessary capacity (available space and access to the Internet), in the creation of information centers in the field of intellectual property, through which will be disseminated information for various categories of users (pupils, students, economic agents, etc.), thus ensuring local communities access to a greater variety of sources of information and broadening of the range of services provided by libraries.

Information and training seminars in the field of protection of industrial property, copyright and related rights for librarians working in public, town and village libraries of the republic will be organized throughout the year.

The following seminars will be held in public district libraries of Soroca, Calarasi, Causani, Comrat, Ungheni, Anenii-Noi, Balti, Cahul, Nisporeni, Sangerei, Floresti, Drochia, Telenesti.

NOVATECA Program, implemented by IREX Moldova with the support of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), aims to strengthen the institutional capacities of the Republic of Moldova libraries, including through the modernization of technologies used and diversification of services provided.

On February 20, 2014, AGEPI and IREX Moldova signed a Memorandum of Understanding, which provides for the diversification and modernization of public library services and facilitation of applicants and civil society access to information tools and literature in the field of intellectual property, especially in the framework of NOVATECA Program.