West Sumatra Law Ministry Seeks Geographical Indication Protection for Endemic Singkarak Lake Species

The Regional Office of the Ministry of Law in West Sumatra is continuing efforts to protect the intellectual property of the bilih fish, an endemic species unique to Lake Singkarak. The bilih fish is an endemic species of Lake Singkarak that is important to protect through Geographical Indication registration, said Lista Widyaningsih, Head of the Legal Services Division at the West Sumatra Law Ministry, in Padang on Thursday. She explained that the process of registering the bilih fish as a Geographical Indication, which is part of intellectual property rights, has been underway since the beginning of the year. She stated that the registration is a strategic step to provide legal certainty and protect the reputation, authenticity, and quality of the bilih fish. This regional specialty fish needs protection to prevent misuse by irresponsible parties. The Geographical Indication registration is expected to boost economic value, add value for fishermen and local businesses, while preserving the biological heritage that is the pride of the Minangkabau realm. Broadly speaking, she noted there are three stages that must be passed in the Geographical Indication registration. The first is completing the required documents, such as the community group decree, a map of the area, laboratory test results, the history of the bilih fish, and others. Once all the requirements are met, the next stage is submitting the application, which will be followed by publication. The Directorate General of Intellectual Property will later deploy an Expert Team to conduct a substantive examination and review the submitted application documents. We are optimistic that the Geographical Indication registration process for the Lake Singkarak bilih fish can be completed this year, provided synergy between parties proceeds smoothly, she said. She added that collecting the required documents requires synergy between community groups, local government, universities, and the West Sumatra Law Ministry. Strong synergy is needed to achieve inclusive and sustainable regional economic development in West Sumatra.