2024 Africa Intellectual Property (IP) Summit Positions Intellectual Property (IP) Rights as Catalyst for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Africa

The 5th Annual Africa Intellectual Property Rights Summit, themed “Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs): The Catalyst for Sustainable Development Goals in Africa,” took place November 28-30, 2024, at the Serena Hotel in Kigali, Rwanda.  

African Newspage (https://apo-opa.co/4f1QNRo) is the Official Media Partner of the 5th Africa IP Summit

The Summit brought together policymakers, industry leaders, legal experts, academics, and innovators who explored the critical role of Intellectual Property (IP) in fostering economic growth, innovation, and sustainable development in Africa. 

The 2024 All Africa IP Summit united stakeholders from diverse sectors and backgrounds who brainstormed strategies for addressing crucial challenges plaguing Africa’s IPR ecosystem, proffering actionable solutions to the continent’s IPR-related challenges to ensure IP works for Africa and Africans and exploring the role of the IPR ecosystem in realizing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Africa. 

In his remarks, AfCFTA Secretary-General Wamkele Mene (represented by Dr. Tsotetsi Makong, Chief Technical Advisor, Capacity Building, Trade Policy, and Negotiations) emphasized the urgent need for Africa to leverage IPR for economic transformation and wondered why, despite numerous tools provided by global entities like the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Africa remains at the rock-bottom in terms of IP utilization. 

Mr Mene advocated a comprehensive ecosystem integrating IPR with trade, manufacturing, and value chains under AfCFTA, underscoring the importance of aligning IP with Africa’s broader economic agenda.  

“We should have a model focusing on administrative, institutional, and regulatory capacity. I therefore urge African leaders to seize the moment amid global shifts in trade and technology. The world is remaking itself and we should not let this moment pass us by. We should also conclude the AfCFTA IP Protocol negotiations by 2025 to secure Africa’s economic future,” Mene urged. 

In his goodwill message H.E Olusegun Awolowo, National Coordinator of Nigeria’s AfCFTA Coordination Office (represented by Mr. Olusegun Olutayo, Lead, Trade Enablement) stressed Kigali’s historic role in shaping Africa’s economic narrative, describing it as the birthplace of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), highlighting the pivotal role of IP in Africa’s transformation. He said protecting IPRs, through patents, trademarks, and copyrights is essential for unlocking Africa’s economic potential.  

“The future of Africa’s economy rests squarely on our ability to safeguard these intellectual assets as there is a great prospect for job creation and economic growth. Protection of these rights is key, not merely to the existence of rights. It is time to popularize intellectual property rights across the continent, therefore, innovators may pass on, but their innovations must endure,” Awolowo pointed out. 

Awolowo proposed two strategic recommendations for developing IPRs in Africa: developing a Pan-African IP strategy aligned with AfCFTA objectives and strengthening capacity-building initiatives in IP law and innovation management. 

In his remarks, Dr. Sylvance Okoth, Executive Secretary of the East African Science and Technology Commission (represented by Prof. Tatien Masharabu), emphasized that Science, Technology, and Innovation are at the heart of the East African Community’s (EAC) Vision 2050. As part of this vision, EASTECO has developed the EAC Regional IP Policy (2023–2030) to create a dynamic IP environment that drives socioeconomic progress in East Africa. 

Dr Okoth stressed the importance of IPRs in incentivizing creativity, facilitating technology transfer, and enhancing value addition. “A harmonized regional IP framework will ease international trade, strengthen innovation ecosystems, and bolster infrastructure development. “Intellectual property rights are a cornerstone for social, cultural, and economic advancement, driving sustainable development across the African region, thus, I call on stakeholders to embrace IP as a catalyst for growth.” 

In her remarks, Ms. Altaye Tedla Desta of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) Academy, described the Africa IP Summit as a unique opportunity to unlock Africa’s immense potential in an idea-driven economy, emphasizing the critical role of intellectual property (IP) in Africa’s development, particularly by empowering its youth through the integration of IP education into the curriculum of schools, colleges, and universities. 

Ms. Desta stressed that IP should extend beyond legal frameworks to science, engineering, and business to enable young innovators to retain the value of their creativity adding that if nurtured, managed, and protected, inventions will benefit Africa. “The WIPO Academy is committed to advancing IP knowledge in Africa through skills development, focusing on cutting-edge areas like AI and technology. The next generation must be knowledgeable about IP to compete globally.”  

The 2024 All Africa IP Summit concluded with a commitment from all delegates to continue advocating for IP-driven solutions to Africa’s most pressing development challenges. The climax of the Summit was the selection of the host country for the Summit’s 2025 edition through an open voting process. Senegal emerged first with over 54% of the votes followed by Kenya (29%) and then Uganda (17%). Thus, the 6th All Africa IP Summit will be held in Dakar, Senegal come November 12-14th, 2025. 

Are you interested in attending or sponsoring the 6th Annual Africa IP Summit in Dakar, Senegal? Contact africaipsummit@it-rc.org or +2348180381825 (WhatsApp).

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Newspage.