Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights in Africa

This is the first book providing a detailed overview of the law and practice in relation to intellectual property rights enforcement in all 54 African countries. It lays out how trade mark, copyright and patent owners can enforce their rights in Africa through the civil and criminal courts, and at the borders through customs.

Africa is rising: with double-digit growth figures in many countries, its growing middle and upper class, the continent represents an untapped, dynamic, fast-moving and competitive market that businesses can scarcely ignore. Intellectual property right owners are increasingly paying attention to this new African dynamic and have started to invest into African markets. Unfortunately, so have counterfeiters. Taking action against counterfeit and pirated products in Africa is a challenge against which right holders and their representatives often feel overwhelmed. Filling a gap in the market, this is the only book providing a detailed overview of the law and practice in relation to intellectual property rights enforcement in all 54 African countries and through the two main regional intellectual property organisations, the OAPI and the ARIPO. For the first time, a comprehensive manual on the conditions and procedures under which the civil and criminal courts, the police and customs take action with regard to counterfeit and pirated goods is available. Arranged in a systematic manner, the reader will find for every jurisdiction information on the factual background, the organisation of the courts, the legal context, the judicial, civil and criminal enforcement of patents, trade marks and copyrights as well as information on the scope, requirements and practical application about customs recordals. Counterfeiting and piracy constitutes a dire problem in Africa but as the book will show, solutions, often unknown and unexplored, do exist. With this publication, the authors aim at demystifying intellectual property rights enforcement in Africa by providing valuable information to right holders, judges, lawyers and law enforcement officials.