Intellectual property (IP) now plays an increasingly prominent role in strategies for innovation and economic development. However, one question remains unanswered in Latin America and the Caribbean: why does a region with scientific talent, entrepreneurial capacity and significant progress in the field of intellectual property continue to face difficulties in transforming knowledge into sustained economic growth?
The recent study Harnessing Intellectual Property for Development: Opportunities and Challenges for Latin America and the Caribbean[1], published by ECLAC and the European Patent Office (EPO), provides relevant insights to answer this question. The study confirms that the region faces persistent gaps in its ability to make strategic use of its intangible assets, despite the fact that intellectual property-intensive industries generate higher levels of productivity and employment.
The analysis covers nine economies in the region, including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico, which account for a significant proportion of innovation and patenting activity in Latin America. The results reveal common patterns: a high dependence on technology developed outside the region — to the extent that over 85% of patent applications come from foreign parties, reflecting the difficulties in establishing a home-grown innovation base —[2]; low levels of investment in research and development compared with more advanced economies; and difficulties in scaling up technology transfer processes to the productive sector.
The region strengthened its intellectual property systems
Over the last few decades, Latin America has made significant progress in developing its intellectual property systems. The modernisation of national offices, the updating of regulatory frameworks, accession to international treaties and the incorporation of IP into science, technology and innovation policies all reflect a process of institutional strengthening.
There is also a greater understanding of the role played by intangible assets within organisations. Companies increasingly refer to trademarks, technology, know-how, software and industrial design as elements that generate value. Universities have strengthened their research capabilities, and numerous public programmes promote innovation-based entrepreneurship.
These developments are significant because they have helped to establish intellectual property as a strategic issue rather than merely a legal one. The study itself points out that R&D-intensive activities are associated with better economic indicators: they account for 12.4% of formal manufacturing employment and 13.0% of the sector’s added value, and pay salaries that are 32.1% higher than in other sectors. In industries that are particularly patent-intensive, this salary differential stands at 56.2%, suggesting that technological innovation is the factor that has the greatest impact on employment quality.
In Colombia, intellectual property-intensive industries account for 21.3% of employment and 22.7% of the added value of the national manufacturing sector (average for 2016–2020). Furthermore, employees in these sectors earn salaries that are 15.2% higher than those in non-IP-intensive sectors, which confirms the link between innovation, productivity and higher-quality employment.
The question, then, is not whether intellectual property generates value, but rather how to ensure that this value is realised more widely across the region.[3]
When knowledge leaves the laboratory
The region generates knowledge. Universities produce research findings, technology centres develop solutions for various sectors, and start-ups are increasingly incorporating elements of innovation into their business models. However, a significant proportion of that knowledge does not make it all the way to the market.
In many cases, technological developments do not result in effective technology transfer processes. In other cases, organisations protect certain assets but lack strategies for licensing, commercialising or integrating them into their growth processes. It is also common to come across start-ups that build value through technology, data or know-how without having clearly identified what their intangible assets are or how to manage them.
Foreign trade figures reflect this gap. Intellectual property-intensive industries account for just 9% of regional exports, whilst concentrating 19% of imports. In other words, Latin America consumes more knowledge-intensive goods than it manages to produce and export. This asymmetry highlights one of the main constraints on transforming innovation capabilities into international competitiveness.
In addition, regional expenditure on research and development stands at around 0.6% of GDP and continues to be funded mainly from public resources and carried out within the academic sector, whereas in the most advanced economies, private investment plays a much more significant role. Strengthening the involvement of the productive sector in the generation and adoption of knowledge will be essential to bridging the gap between the laboratory and the market.
From protection to impact
The debate on intellectual property in Latin America is entering a new phase. For years, much of the discussion centred on strengthening protection mechanisms and promoting a stronger IP culture. Although these objectives remain relevant, it is now necessary to broaden the discussion to include the strategic use of intangible assets.
In Colombia, this debate is nothing new. The National Intellectual Property Policy (CONPES 4062 of 2021[4]) had already highlighted that one of the country’s main challenges was to strengthen its capacity to generate, manage and exploit intangible assets economically. The document recognised that intellectual property should be integrated more effectively into the processes of innovation, technology transfer and productive development, a conclusion that is fully in line with the views put forward by ECLAC and the European Patent Office for the region.
Colombia has made institutional progress since then and now has an intellectual property authority that is recognised throughout the region. However, questions remain regarding the ecosystem’s capability to transform knowledge into transferable assets, attract technology-based investment and establish mechanisms that facilitate the valuation of research outcomes.
For universities, this means strengthening the processes of technology transfer and the valuation of research outcomes. For start-ups, this means incorporating intellectual property management from the early stages as part of their growth strategy. For businesses, this represents an opportunity to use intangible assets as tools for forging partnerships, accessing new markets or developing knowledge-based business models.
Intellectual property has the greatest impact when it is linked to business decisions, innovation processes and knowledge transfer mechanisms. Otherwise, it runs the risk of becoming a protective exercise with little impact on financial results.
In conclusion, the challenge for Latin America is no longer simply to strengthen its intellectual property systems, but to ensure that these become genuine instruments of development. The ability to link research, innovation, business and the market will largely determine which countries succeed in capturing the economic and social value generated by knowledge.
Intellectual property assets, on their own, do not generate growth. Their impact depends on the ability of organisations and innovation ecosystems to transform intangible assets into new technologies, businesses, partnerships and opportunities for development.
Protection is still necessary. But the true potential of intellectual property is realised when knowledge is successfully transformed into value.
Laura Patiño, IP Business management and training – PONS IP Colombia
[1] Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) & European Patent Office (EPO). Harnessing Intellectual Property for Development: Opportunities and Challenges for Latin America and the Caribbean. Santiago: ECLAC & EPO, 2026. Available at: https://www.cepal.org/en/publications/90028-harnessing-intellectual-property-development-opportunities-and-challenges-latin
[2] ECLAC & EPO. Harnessing Intellectual Property for Development. 2026. Chapter 4: Patent Lens: Innovation in Latin America and the Caribbean, p. 73.
[3] ECLAC & EPO. Harnessing Intellectual Property for Development. 2026. Chapter 2: Opportunities afforded in IPR-intensive industries, p. 39.
[4] CONPES 4062 of 2021 https://normograma.mincultura.gov.co/compilacion/docs/conpes_dnp_4062_2021.htm
