Overall assessment and recommendations

This chapter presents the overall assessment of Malaysia’s intellectual property (IP) system and specifies recommendations that can help enhance its contributions to innovation. It provides an overview of the context in which IP policy is made, including the mandates of different government ministries, the composition of Malaysian industry, and the needs, usage, development and attitudes toward IP of different industries and research institutions. Major recommendations include the need to consolidate IP policy making powers within the government, with a strong secretariat providing support to encourage the use of cheaper and easier-to-access IP rights to improve collaboration and information sharing between research institutions and industry and to increase knowledge about, and the use of, IP among smaller businesses and smallholders.