The Saudi King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) which houses Saudi Arabia’s patent office is reported to have approved approximately 3,500 patents since the patent office began operations in 1982. Of those patents, about 23% were filed by Saudi nationals, while the remaining 77% are foreign-owned patents. Patents relating to humanitarian needs currently dominate the Saudi Arabian patent landscape, followed by patents in the fields of chemistry and mining. The remainder of patents cover physics, construction, mechanical engineering and electrical fields as well as textiles and paper. The KACST is reported to have entered into an innovation fostering agreement with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in 2012. (arabnews.com, 17 August 2014)
