Original news and analysis on international IP policy
KAMPALA, Uganda -- An Ebola vaccine trial is underway in Uganda, as the global search for an effective vaccine continues. The vaccine candidate was co-developed by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the United States National Institutes of Health (NIH), and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), a United Kingdom-based pharmaceutical company.
Artists in Malawi are hopeful that the Copyright Bill, drafted four years ago, will be discussed when the parliament meets in the first quarter of this year, paving a way to plug unauthorised use of works that they say has led to massive loss of revenue.
NAIROBI, Kenya -- As the budding East African pharmaceutical industry shows clear gains , experts at a pharmaceutical summit in Kenya underlined the sector as key to tackling challenges related to access to essential medicines in the region.
NAIROBI, Kenya -- The battle for music royalties in Kenya has spurred musicians and artists to demand transparency and accountability in the Music Copyright Society of Kenya (MCSK), the body that collects and distributes the fees.
The Nigerian government has continued to make progress toward new copyright legislation in recent weeks, but efforts appear to have become less transparent, as the results of a public comment period that ended weeks ago have not been made available and the draft copy of the bill is no longer available on the Copyright Commission website.
KAMPALA, Uganda - Small and medium enterprises in Uganda should brand their products with geographical indications and collective marks to gain competitive advantage. This was one of the messages during a recent World Intellectual Property Organization event entitled, Advanced Training of Trainers Program on Effective Intellectual Property Asset Management by Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, (SMEs). The training took place in Kampala, Uganda on 8-10 December.
NAIROBI, Kenya -- The government of Kenya has inaugurated a board to steer the Kenya National Innovation Agency (KNIA), which is charged with increasing awareness of intellectual property rights among investors, universities, research institutions and the general public. The move comes as experts have offered gloomy views on the IP situation in Kenya and elsewhere in Africa.
The most-read stories of 2015 on the Intellectual Property Watch website fairly reflected the trends of the year, with the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, India’s evolving intellectual property rights policies, European Patent Office patents on conventional vegetables, biologics, 3D printing, and some pop culture issues leading the way.
In the coming weeks, IP-Watch will review in-depth what’s in store for 2016, already underway. But for now, let’s take a look at last year’s highlights.
CAPE TOWN, South Africa - Zimbabwe has kicked off a new project to support adoption of research data management and sharing services among government, universities and research institutions as part of its plans to pave the way for a nationwide open access mandate. Meanwhile, similar efforts are appearing across Africa.
NAIROBI, Kenya- Ahead of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Summit in Nairobi, Kenya’s intellectual property laws are coming under scrutiny over what experts see as their inability to protect economic projects and inspire innovations.
CAPE TOWN, South Africa -- A law to regulate intellectual property derived from research and development conducted using public funds has boosted the number of patent applications filed and granted by universities and research institutions in the past five years.
The African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) recently held two top organ meetings in Lusaka, Zambia, to debate the organisation’s strategic plan for 2016-2020.