Important! MSMEs Are Encouraged To Register Their Trademarks Starting This Year

Deputy for Digital Economy and Creative Products of the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy Muhammad Neil El Himam (Photo: Theresia Agatha/VOI)

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy (Kemenparekraf) reminded all Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to immediately register intellectual property rights (HKI) this year.

This is because the trademarks of MSME actors as intellectual property rights are very important.

"Usually MSMEs at least have brands. Well, these brands need to be registered. The method can be through the Ministry of Law and Human Rights (Kemenkumham)," said Deputy for Digital Economy and Creative Products of the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy Muhammad Neil El Himam in Jakarta, Thursday, February 9.

He said that his party also has its own program to make it easier for MSMEs to register trademarks. The main requirement to be able to register MSME trademarks is to at least have products. In addition, MSME products also already have a consumer market.

"Creative economy products are usually based on intellectual property and that's important," said El Himam.

According to him, registering this trademark is also important when MSMEs want to develop. In addition, MSME players will also be facilitated when they are about to sell their product franchises.

Furthermore, said El Himam, his party is also still working on a scheme so that the intellectual property rights of MSMEs can be used as loan guarantees. This is stated in one of the mandates of Government Regulation Number 24 of 2022 is to realize intellectual property-based financing.

"Hopefully MSMEs can utilize intellectual property to become a kind of guarantee in the next production," he explained.

"So, this financing is later expected for productive types of debt. Later, there will be conditions. So, it's not just that MSMEs have brands, but they don't have value yet," he continued.

Based on a survey conducted by the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy in 2020, it was recorded that only two percent of MSMEs had intellectual property. Meanwhile, MSMEs are aware that the importance of having intellectual property is only about 30 percent.

"That is also our challenge. So, before jumping as a guarantee of financing later, we remind you that intellectual property rights are important," concluded El Himam.