Since the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) was put forward in 2013, China has signed cooperation agreements on intellectual property rights (IPRs) with 57 BRI partner countries and IPR has become an important bridge for their exchanges on sci-tech innovation and for enhancing connectivity.

"We are committed to providing equal protection to the IPRs of domestic and foreign enterprises," Sheng Li, deputy director general of the Department of International Cooperation, China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA), said. "We have established a regular communication mechanism to attract more foreign enterprises to invest in China and share the dividends of China's development and the super-large market."

According to statistics released by the CNIPA on September 4, since 2013, China has held more than 50 training courses and trained more than 1,300 IP practitioners in BRI partner countries. A total of 230 students from over 50 countries have enrolled in the BRI IP master's program.

Patent applications in China from BRI partner countries are increasing. By the end of 2023, the number of valid patents in China from BRI partner countries reached 153,000, an average annual growth rate of nine percent, compared with the end of 2013.

From 2013 to 2023, the cumulative number of patent applications and grants from Chinese enterprises in BRI partner countries and related organizations hit 70,000 and 35,000 respectively, maintaining an average annual growth rate of more than 20 percent. The patent innovation momentum of constructing a digital BRI is notably strong.

Sheng mentioned that next, the CNIPA will strengthen international cooperation on IPR, carry out more practical cooperation projects, and serve high-level opening-up.