World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), www.wipo.int, Geneva. WIPO is an international organisation “dedicated to promoting the use and protection of works of the human spirit.” These works, or intellectual property, are expanding the bounds of science and technology and enriching the world of the arts. WIPO is a specialised agency of the United Nations and administers 23 international treaties dealing with different aspects of intellectual property protection. It has 183 member states.
World Trade Organisation (WTO), www.wto.int. WTO’s agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) entails mechanisms for enforcing IP protection.
African Regional Industrial property Organisation (ARIPO), www.aripo.org. ARIPO, which is headquartered in Zimbabwe, was established “to pool the resources of its member countries in industrial property matters together in order to avoid duplication of financial and human resources”. An agreement for its establishment was signed in Lusaka in 1976 and came into force on February 15 1978. From that date, the UN Economic Commission for Africa and WIPO acted as is joint secretariat, until the body established it own secretariat in Zimbabwe.
Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment (ACODE), Uganda, www.acode-u.org. ACODE’s mission is to “influence development and governance policies for the promotion of social justice in Eastern Africa” through policy research and advocacy.
Kenya Industrial Property Institute, http://www.kipi.go.ke/. Its mandate is to administer industrial property rights, provide technological information, training in industrial property rights to the public and promote inventiveness and innovativeness for accelerated technological, industrial and social economic development in Kenya. It was created by government under the trade and industry ministry in 2002.
Tanzania Bureau of Registration and Licencing Agency (BRELA), www.brela-tz.com . Its role is to ensure that businesses operate in accordance with the laid down regulations and sound commercial principles. It was established by government in 1999.
