BUSINESS Registration and Licensing Agency (Brela) has signed agreements with three institutions to promote and protect creative works.

The institutions are Tanzania Institute of Accountancy (TIA), Tanzania Plant Health and Pesticides Authority (TPHPA) and Mzumbe University.

The trio signed the agreements in Dar es Salaam yesterday in front of Deputy Minister for Culture, Arts and Sports Hamis Mwinjuma during celebration of the World Intellectual Property Day.

 Speaking immediately after signing the agreements, TIA Rector Prof William Pallangyo, said the agreement was of great benefit to the institute.

 He said that through the cooperation, they will increase research capacity through works carried out by the institute as well as consultancy and technical support works.

 Prof Pallangyo said that Brela will help TIA students through various steps to register their inventions as many currently do not know what to do to protect and develop their work legally.

 "Our students will benefit a lot from this collaboration because when they have works of creativity, they fail to protect them because they don't have knowledge of what to do," he said.

 He said that through the cooperation they will organize and participate in various seminars and conferences to promote understanding of students and tutors about matters related to business registration and business operations professionally and to protect innovations of young innovators.

"TIA will organize various workshops to provide an opportunity for Brela at all seven campuses to provide education about intellectual property and alumni will also have the opportunity to learn about innovations and get business registration education that will be provided," he said.

Prof William Senkondo, Vice Chancellor of Mzumbe University, said the institution signed the agreement so that it can benefit from various opportunities in the area of intellectual property.

 He said they were conducting research and preparing new curricula and have been holding various conferences; therefore, the collaboration will enable them to become more modern.

 "We have been thinking of enabling our institution to offer courses that open it up more internationally and solve various challenges in society. We will collaborate on matters that affect professions and titles. We will also prepare new curricula and courses in collaboration," he said.

 "We will prepare publications together to distribute intellectual property education to the people and we are ready in the area of competence; we are well organized to ensure that this cooperation brings about a big change to ensure that youth have the opportunity to contribute to the economy of this country."