Raising IP awareness in Africa: a call to action

• Author: John O. Kakonge
• Position: Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Kenya to the United Nations Office in Geneva and the World Trade Organization (WTO)
• Pages: 30-32

p. 30 2014 | 2

By Dr. John O. Kakon ge, Ambassador

and Permane nt Representative of Ke nya to

the United Nati ons Oce in Geneva and th e

World Trade Organizatio n (WTO)

There is a commonly he ld assumption, in Africa at least, that only

educated people can protect a n idea or use the intellectual prop-

erty (IP) system to do so. As a result, althoug h Africa is home

to many talented creators, their works are larg ely undervalued

and unprotected. If Africa is to fully ben et from its wealth of

creative and innovative talent and ta ke its rightful place on th e

world IP stage, Africans nee d to fully recognize and cele brate

the talents of their innovators and creators.

Every once in a while storie s of African ingenuity surface i n the

international press or on social media networks. For example,

thanks to social media we heard ab out the smart idea s of

Richard Turere, a young Masai boy, who saved his family’s

cattle from predators by devisin g an ingenious warning device

known as Lion Lights. Tha nks to the media attention this story

attracted, Richard was recently i nvited to speak at a TED con-

ference in California. O n the strength of his work he has also

won a scholarship to continue his s tudies. His school is also

now exploring ways to protect his innovation using the IP system.

We need to seek out and celebrate such exa mples of ingenuity.

This is essential if we are to improve awarene ss of the social,

economic and cultural va lue of the continent’s innovative and

creative resources. It is also cr itical to our success in buil ding

a sustainable knowledge-based economy.

Low-levels of IP awareness among the publi c mean that that

neither breach of copyright nor plagiarism is considered wrong

and there is little realiz ation that it is unlawful. Law enforcement

ofcers are swimming a gainst a tide of public ambivalence when

it comes to IP, which makes their task all the more dif cult. Many

individuals are driven by a n overriding concern to make money

from an idea regardles s of where the idea comes from. T hey

care little about the ri ghts (economic or moral) of the per son

or group that rst came up with a nd developed the idea. All

too often, the burden of proof falls on the inventor or cre ator to

establish the legal ri ghts in their work. This is an uphi ll battle

that puts a drain on their time, energ y and nancial resources.

Raising IP

awareness in Africa:

A CALL

TO ACTION

Photo: © Ewaso Lions

Richard Turere sav ed his famil y’s cattle from preda tors by

devising a n ingenious wa rning devic e known as Lion Li ghts.