African Regional Intellectual Property Organization

The African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO), formerly African Regional Industrial Property Organization, is an intergovernmental organization for cooperation among African states in patent and other intellectual property matters. ARIPO was established by the Lusaka Agreement[1] of 1976. It has the capacity to hear applications for patents and registered trademarks in its member states who are parties to the Harare (patents), Banjul (marks) and Arusha (plant varieties) protocols.[1] ARIPO also features a protocol on the protection of traditional knowledge, the Swakopmund Protocol,[1] signed in 2010 by 9 member states of the organization which entered into force on May 11, 2015, and was amended on December 6, 2016.

Map of current ARIPO members in blue, nations with observer status in green.

ARIPO has the WIPO ST.3 code AP. Its 19 member states[2] are mostly English-speaking countries. Rwanda became the 18th member state on March 24, 2010,[3][4] and São Tomé and Príncipe on May 19, 2014 (the Harare Protocol entered into force on August 19, 2014 with respect to São Tomé and Príncipe).[5]

The name of the organization changed from African Regional Industrial Property Organization to African Regional Intellectual Property Organization in 2005.

Members
Memberships as of 11 December 2015[6]
Country Date of Membership or Entry into Force
Lusaka Agreement Harare Protocol Banjul Protocol Arusha Protocol Swakopmund Protocol
 Botswana 6 February 19856 May 198529 October 2003X 28 March 2015
 Gambia 15 February 197816 January 1986X6 July 2015 11 February 2015
 Ghana 15 February 197825 April 1984X6 July 2015 X
 Kenya 15 February 197824 October 1984XX X
 Lesotho 23 July 198723 October 198712 February 1999X X
 Liberia 24 December 200924 March 201024 March 2010X 25 October 2016
 Malawi 15 February 197824 October 19846 March 1997X 20 December 2012
 Mozambique 8 February 20008 May 2000X6 July 2015 X
 Namibia 14 October 200323 April 200414 January 2004X 11 February 2015
 Rwanda 24 June 201124 September 2011xX 16 July 2012
 São Tomé and Príncipe 19 May 201419 August 201427 February 20166 July 2015 X
 Sierra Leone 5 December 198025 February 1999XX X
 Somalia 10 March 1981XXX X
 Sudan 2 May 197824 October 1984XX X
 Swaziland 17 December 198717 March 19886 March 1997X X
 Tanzania 12 October 19831 September 19991 September 1999X X
 Uganda 8 August 197824 October 198421 November 2000X X
 Zambia 15 February 197826 February 1986XX 28 August 2015
 Zimbabwe 11 November 198024 October 19846 March 1997X 22 April 2013

Observers
  1.  Algeria
  2.  Angola
  3.  Burundi
  4.  Egypt
  5.  Eritrea
  6.  Ethiopia
  7.  Libya
  8.  Mauritius
  9.  Nigeria
  10.  Seychelles
  11.  South Africa
  12.  Tunisia

Organs

ARIPO’s organisational structure consists of four organs: the Council of Ministers, the Administrative Council, the Secretariat, and the Board of Appeal.

Rights covered

Together, the two protocols constituting the organisation cover copyright, industrial design, patent, trademark, traditional knowledge and utility model rights.[7]

See also

References
  1. See the list of ARIPO-administered treaties at WIPO website. Consulted on July 4, 2013.
  2. "Member States". ARIPO. Archived from the original on 31 May 2014. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
  3. ARIPO web site, Rwanda Joins ARIPO Archived November 1, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, News, Thursday, 4 August 2011. Consulted on September 16, 2011.
  4. Rwanda Joins ARIPO, PCT Newsletter, September 2011, No. 09/2010, p. 1.
  5. "Sào Tomé and Príncipe". ARIPO. Retrieved 30 May 2014.; "Sao Tome and Principe Joins ARIPO". PCT Newsletter, No. 06/2014. WIPO. June 2014. Archived from the original on 23 July 2014. Retrieved 28 June 2014.
  6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2017-05-12. Retrieved 2016-11-07.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. "ARIPO Patent Office homepage". Archived from the original on 2010-05-01. Retrieved 2008-02-12.
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