In November 2010, Munir Suboh, an associate of the IP/IT Department, along with six senior inspectors of Dubai Customs, travelled to Germany to attend a highly specialized, anti-counterfeiting product recognition workshop. The workshop was organized and sponsored by the Global Quality Assurance Department of Japan Tobacco International Germany GmbH. JTI is a leading world-wide tobacco company that heavily invests in protecting the integrity of its brands and enforcement of its intellectual property rights against counterfeiters.

The key objective of the workshop was to give the participants from Dubai Customs, one of the major IP enforcement agencies in the UAE, specialized training in respect of JTI’s brands, and to share with the participants the latest techniques, instruments and investigation methodologies to assist Dubai Customs in distinguishing between genuine and counterfeit cigarettes.

The workshop included a detailed induction into the unique elements of genuine JTI products. The participants received a comprehensive orientation on practical elements that inspectors need to consider when trying to distinguish genuine JTI cigarettes from fakes. They also visited a JTI tobacco factory and observed the manufacturing process on the production lines. The training was concluded with a visit to the JTI Research & Development Centre.

The Dubai Customs inspectors demonstrated a high level of knowledge and experience in IP enforcement. JTI issued certificates to the participants in recognition of their participation in the training workshop, and Dubai Customs presented JTI with a plaque to show its appreciation of the value of the training provided by JTI.

Munir Suboh handles anti-counterfeiting activity in the UAE for JTI and has represented the company in various raids and legal actions. He accompanied the group from Dubai Customs to support the entire event on behalf of JTI.