Plans are at an advanced stage to merge Kenya’s three intellectual property agencies more than six years after a presidential team proposed the tie-up in parastatal reforms.
A Bill has emanated from a task force drawn from the Kenya Industrial Property Institute (Kipi), Anti-Counterfeit Authority, the Kenya Copyright Board (Kecobo), and the Ministry of Industrialisation.
The Bill that was discussed until mid-May is proposing the establishment of the Intellectual Property Office of Kenya (Ipok) in the merger. It will secure patents, trademarks, copyrights, and geographical indications.
Once it is passed, the law will repeal the Industrial Property, Trademarks, Copyright, and Anti-Counterfeit Acts.
This is coming at a time Kenya is grappling with wanton intellectual theft, counterfeiting, limited knowledge about protection of creations, and many ideas gathering dust in universities, government agencies, and homes.
Due to these gaps, researchers and random creators have been developing cold feet towards sharing their innovations and entrepreneurship ideas, fearing these gems being stolen by people who claim collaboration.
This week, the ACA has released a report saying illicit trade, including counterfeiting, was eating up to Sh103 billion in revenues that Kenya badly needs when the country is on a borrowing spree to fund its budget. Under the proposed law, counterfeits will reshipped or returned to countries of origin at the cost of importers.
According to the Bill, the Cabinet Secretary concerned will come up an IP policy to promote the benefits of creations and a strategy to generate, protect, commercialise and enforce intellectual property rights.
The strategy, will be reviewed every five years, showing that the new institution is being modelled to monitor the creations market at a time technological disruptions were super-fast and competition fiercer
At the just concluded university and college courses selection in Kenya, more than half of the candidates chose science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEMs) programmes but technical and vocational courses uptake at polytechnics was at a paltry 32 percent.
According to the Bill, the IP office is mandated to stop counterfeiting, trade and dealings in fakes through which the country is losing more than Sh100 billion yearly.
Put to good use, Sh100 billion is enough to revamp Kenyan universities that are short of key resources like the faculty, facilities, and student loans as allocation from the Exchequer keeps dwindling, hurting research and innovation.
Should it become law, it is expected that the IP Office will help reduce and stop runaway theft of ideas with its mandate of vetting and verifying technology agreements. It will also undertake “valuation and commercialisation” of IP, helping to cushion uninformed creators who have sold their unprotected and easy-to-access works for a song.
It will have Council at the apex and a tribunal to decide disputes arising from use of inventions.
Chairmen and members of boards and tribunals of the merged entities will be replaced once the law is enacted.
