EVENT: Unveiling of Proposed Law on Protection of Traditional Knowledge and Traditional Cultural Expressions in Kenya

On Wednesday 8th May 2013, the Honourable Attorney General Prof. Githu Muigai will officiate the National Stakeholders’ Validation Seminar on the proposed legal framework on Protection of Traditional Knowledge (TK) and Traditional Culture Expressions (TCEs) at the Red Court Hotel, South C, Nairobi from 9:00am to 12:00noon. The legal framework aims to protect holders of … Continue reading »

How Laughter Works: XYZ Show, Parody and Intellectual Property Rights in Constitutional Kenya

“A society that takes itself too seriously risks bottling up its tensions and treating every example of irreverence as a threat to its existence. Humour is one of the great solvents of democracy. It permits the ambiguities and contradictions of public life to be articulated in non-violent forms. It promotes diversity. It enables a multitude … Continue reading »

Access to Medicines in the Developing World: No to Evergreening in Novartis Case and No to Patent Linkage in Patricia Asero Case

As part of the World IP Day 2013 activities in Kenya, CIPIT will host a special intellectual property (IP) debate organised by the Aids Law Project (ALP) between students drawn from the local universities. The topic of this debate is: how the Novartis and Patricia Asero court decisions affect public health in developing countries. Although … Continue reading »

World Intellectual Property Day – April 26 2013: Some Planned Activities in Kenya

Twelve years ago, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) created the “World Intellectual Property (IP) Day” as an event intended to “raise awareness of the role of intellectual property in our daily lives, and to celebrate the contribution made by innovators and creators to the development of societies across the globe”. Last year, this blog … Continue reading »

L’Oréal Acquires Nice & Lovely Trademark in Multi-Billion Shilling Deal

Media reports (here, here and here) indicate that the world’s largest multinational cosmetics company L’Oréal has acquired Kenya’s Interconsumer Products Ltd’s flagship Nice & Lovely brands, in a multi-million dollar acquisition reported this past week. L’Oréal opened shop in Nairobi in late 2011 and has for the past 18 months been in talks with Interconsumer … Continue reading »

Intellectual Property and Outdoor Advertising in Kenya

Businesses often spend much time and money to create a successful advertising campaign. It is important to protect your intellectual property (IP) assets, so that others do not unfairly copy or free-ride upon your innovative creations.” – Lien Verbauwhede, WIPO. Like in many parts of the world, the advertising sector in Kenya is the new … Continue reading »

State of Kenya’s Intellectual Property Protection and Enforcement Regime

A study commissioned by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Business Action to Stop Counterfeiting and Piracy (BASCAP) initiative reports that Kenya’s current intellectual property (IP) rights regime performs poorly in international gauges, ranking 95th of 130 countries in the IPR Index and 106th of 140 economies in the Global Competitiveness Index 2010. The BASCAP … Continue reading »

An Intellectual Property Perspective of Kenya’s 2013 General Elections

  At about 14h42 local time on March 9th 2013, the Chairperson of the Independent Elections and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) declared that Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta was the duly elected fourth President of the Republic of Kenya. In an earlier post titled: “Words for the Unwary: Intellectual Property and Political Parties in Kenya”, this blogger anticipated … Continue reading »

Balamine Ouattara: New Regional Director for African Copyright Societies

CISAC, the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers, works towards increased recognition and protection of creators’ rights. CISAC was founded in 1926 and is a non-governmental, non-profit organisation. Its headquarters are in Paris, with regional offices in Budapest, Santiago de Chile, Johannesburg and Singapore. CISAC now reports that Mr. Balamine Ouattara has joined … Continue reading »

Kenya Enacts New Law on Science, Technology and Innovation

In January 2013, the President assented to the Science, Technology and Innovation Act 2012. This is an Act of Parliament to facilitate the promotion, coordination and regulation of the progress of science, technology and innovation in the country. This legislation also aims to assign priority to the development of science, technology and innovation. Finally, this … Continue reading »