WIPO organized a national training, to equip Sri Lanka’s patent examiners with skills in prior art search and patent examination.
From May 19 to 21, 2026, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), jointly with the National Intellectual Property Office (NIPO) and with support from the WIPO Funds-In-Trust Japan Industrial Property Global (FIT/Japan IP Global), organized a national training on patent examination in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
The training was designed on two interconnected objectives including strengthening NIPO's technical capacity in patent search and examination, and improving examination quality and efficiency through the use of Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) international phase work products and examination work-sharing platforms. Both are central to NIPO's ability to deliver timely, high-quality decisions on patent applications.
The training program combined substantive sessions with practical exercises, covering both foundational examination standards and specialist fields of growing importance to NIPO.
Mr. Taegeun Kim, Senior Program Officer, PCT International Cooperation Division, WIPO, led sessions covering patent examination procedures, patentability criteria, prior art search, the PCT, work-sharing practices among patent offices, and practical training on writing examination reports and related procedures.
Mr. Takuya Yasui, Director, Multilateral Policy Office, International Policy Division, Japan Patent Office (JPO), delivered a session on pharmaceutical inventions; one of the most technically and legally demanding fields in patent prosecution, and one where NIPO examiners identified the greatest appetite for further development.
Ms. Olga Krysanova, Program Officer, PCT International Division, WIPO, delivered a specialized advanced session on computer-implemented inventions and artificial intelligence, fields that are reshaping the boundaries of patentability and challenging IP offices worldwide, and which are of direct and growing relevance to NIPO's examination work.
Impact on examiners and the institution
15 patent examiners participated in the training and engaged positively throughout the three days. Participants highlighted the practical sessions on prior art search and examination report writing as directly applicable to their daily work, and identified the interactive, example-driven approach as central to the depth of learning achieved. The expressed interest in further training, in particular on pharmaceutical patent examination, reflects both the ambition of NIPO's examiners and the institution's recognition that sustained that capacity development is essential to meeting the demands placed on a modern IP office.
This training gave us practical tools we can apply immediately in our examination work. The sessions on prior art search and examination report writing were particularly valuable, and the opportunity to learn from worked examples and feedback made the difference.
A participant from NIPO
Supporting IP development in Sri Lanka and across regions
A well-functioning patent system depends on the quality of examination at its core. When examiners have the tools, knowledge, and methodologies to assess applications rigorously and consistently, the entire innovation ecosystem benefits. With this in mind, and as part of WIPO's broader efforts to support Member States in strengthening institutional capacity and increasing the effective use of IP systems, WIPO is organizing a series of national and regional training programs globally, including recent ones in Africa and Bangladesh.
In Sri Lanka, the training contributed to building NIPO's capacity to address biotechnology and frontier technology fields, while deepening examiners' ability to apply international examination standards in their daily work. WIPO will continue to support NIPO and partner offices across the region as part of its sustained commitment to delivering capacity-building initiatives that support more effective IP systems and strengthen innovation-led growth. Countries interested in hosting similar trainings are encouraged to contact WIPO PCT for further information.