Trademark registration in Africa is complex due to fragmented systems, slow processes, and high costs. Businesses must navigate regional frameworks like ARIPO and OAPI, alongside individual country offices, each with unique rules. Enforcement is another hurdle, with limited resources and inconsistent laws across borders, making it harder to protect brands.
Four New Collections Added to the Global Brand Database
Users have now (February 27, 2024) access to the national collections of Belize and Sao Tome and Principe, along with the regional collections of the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) and the African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI). These new collections contribute to over 85 thousand records to the available data.
Gambia in West Africa is home to the capital city in which the African Regional Intellectual Property Organisation’s (ARIPO) Administrative Council first adopted the Banjul Protocol in 1993. Under ARIPO’s regional system, applicants are required to designate the member states for which their trademark protection is intended. The associated costs of the procedure depend on the number of designated states in each application. On 3 May Gambia joined the Banjul Protocol, bringing the number of member states to 12 (joining ARIPO, Botswana (joined 2003), Eswatini (1997), Lesotho (1999), Liberia (2010), Malawi (1997), Namibia (2004), Sao Tome and Principe (2016), Tanzania (1999), Uganda (2000) and Zimbabwe (1997)). The government deposited its instrument of ratification with the ARIPO director general on the same day.
