WINDHOEK – Up to 19 member states of the African Regional Intellectual Property Organisation (ARIPO) will meet in Windhoek for the 42nd Administrative Council meeting from 19 to 23 November 2018. ARIPO is an inter-governmental organisation that facilitates cooperation among member states in intellectual property matters, with the objective of pooling financial and human resources and seeking technological advancement for economic, social, technological, scientific and industrial development.
The ARIPO Administrative Council is composed of heads of offices responsible for industrial property and copyright in member states. The Administrative Council has subsidiary committees in place to administer the affairs of ARIPO. These are; Finance, Audit, Staff Affairs and Technical committees.
Namibia, through the Business and Intellectual Property Authority (BIPA), the national agency for intellectual property rights, will host the 42nd session of the ARIPO Administrative Council meeting, set to deliberate and discuss the administrative aspects of ARIPO including the proposed budget and programme of activities for 2019.
The session also looks at recommendations from the subsidiary committees and recommends amendments to the various ARIPO treaties to continually keep them responsive to development needs of member states and customer requirements. The ARIPO Secretariat also gives an account and update of activities embarked on during the year as mandated by the Council. The council meeting is held annually, while every second year, it is combined with the Council of Ministers meeting.
ARIPO is Africa’s leading Intellectual Property hub that fosters creativity and Innovation for economic growth and development in Africa. ARIPO’s mandate is on Copyright, Patents & Utility Models, Industrial Designs, Trademarks, Traditional Knowledge & Folklore, Access and Benefit Sharing, Geographical Indications and Plant Variety Protection.
The ARIPO member states are: Botswana, The Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Rwanda, Säo Tomé and Principe, Somalia, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.