The Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industrialization has commenced the process of developing the country’s first ever National Intellectual Property Policy and Strategy aimed at protecting local innovations, supporting creative industries and transforming the country into a knowledge-based economy.
The draft policy, which is currently at the public participation stage, is expected to provide a comprehensive legal and institutional framework that will safeguard Intellectual Property (IP) rights and at the same time enable innovators, artists and entrepreneurs to commercialize their ideas.
Speaking in Nyeri on Monday during a public participation exercise organised to collect public views on the draft policy, Industrialization Secretary Prof Erastus Gatebe, noted that the absence of an IP policy has continued to hinder the country’s ability to maximize the value of local innovations.
He said that if the country is looking to create quality jobs and stimulate industrial growth, the government must invest in systems that protect innovations and indigenous knowledge.
“The reason why we are keen on this as a Ministry is because we have realized that we have so many innovations and inventions but we rarely benefit from them. They are pirated and are taken away and the innovators wallow in poverty while their innovations are benefiting others. So in order to put our mark in the global market, promote export and promote manufacturing and trade, we must have this policy which will make the country move to the next level,” said Prof Gatebe.
Data from the Kenya Industrial Property Institute, patent application by Kenyan residents’ average few than 200 annually. The study showed that utility models,industrial designs and trademarks remain largely under-utilised despite Kenya’s dynamic entrepreneurial and creative base.
A 2016 Micro Small and Medium Enterprises survey by Kenya National Bureau of Statistics shows that more than 70 per cent of MSMEs operate without awareness of IP rights therefore limiting their ability to protect innovations and build competitive advantage.
Findings from the study further detailed how the country spends less than 1 per cent of its Gross Domestic Product on research and even lesser funding on innovation, IP protection and commercialisation. It also revealed how weak enforcement further compounds the problem.
The Anti-Counterfeit Authority in 2021 estimated that counterfeit goods account for over 10 per cent of the Kenyan market resulting in losses of approximately Sh 50 million annually while undermining legitimate businesses and endangering public health.
Some of the key proposals in the draft policy include establishment of stronger IP safeguards for the creative industry.
The Ministry has proposed mechanisms to tighten copyright enforcement and ensure artists receive fair compensation for their talents.
The policy has also recommended that the Ministry establishes structures to support digital rights management so that creative can fully commercialize their talent.
The framework has also proposed measures to protect the country’s rich traditional knowledge, genetic resources as well as cultural heritage from bio-piracy and unauthorized commercial exploitation. Similarly, it has laid down benefit-sharing guidelines which will ensure local communities retain ownership of their cultural assets while at the same time, benefiting economically from their utilization.
Innovators and developers working in the Technology space are expected to benefit from simplified patent registration processes alongside incentives that are aimed at attracting investments in local start-ups and accelerating the uptake of home-grown technological solutions.
Should members of the public endorse the draft policy, the country’s manufacturing sector will benefit from stronger protection mechanisms for industrial designs and trademarks. As part of the Government’s efforts to curb counterfeit products and illicit trade, the draft policy has recommended that the Ministry intensifies the fight against counterfeit and illicit trade, which continues to undermine genuine local manufacturers.
Agriculture will equally benefit through enhanced protection of new crop varieties and the introduction of geographical indications for region-specific produce. Provisions in the policy indicated that the enhanced protection will add international value to Kenyan products such as coffee tea, macadamia and avocado and enable producers to earn higher returns from unique region specific products.
“These are some of the things we are doing to protect the country as well as to have the maximum benefit out of our strengths. To achieve this, the policy aims to harmonise, strengthen and leverage the unique strengths of the country’s key regulatory bodies and agencies, “said Prof Gatebe.
Speaking at the same event, the Anti-Counterfeit Authority boss Dr Robi Mbugua said the policy will create a conducive environment that will protect innovations and competitiveness of Kenyan products.
He said that besides giving Kenyan youth and innovators an opportunity to convert their ideas into enterprises, the policy will lay the foundation that will help the agency tackle the counterfeit menace in the country.
“Unless Intellectual Property rights are protected, ideas are still prone other people might steal their IP and our innovations and make counterfeit products and end up benefiting. The policy will allow innovators to report to us whenever they come up with products and the authority will move with speed and apprehend anybody who is dealing with counterfeit products, ” he said.
His sentiments were echoed by Kenya Industrial Property Institute (KIPI) Board Member Victoria Kagai who said the institution is collecting public views on how to simplify patent and trademark registration, noting that many Kenyan innovators fail to protect their ideas despite their commercial value.
“We have seen tremendous creativity among young people, particularly in industrial designs, music and artificial intelligence. Our challenge is that many innovators do not register their intellectual property, denying themselves the opportunity to benefit financially from their innovations,” she said.
Acting Kenya Copyright Board Executive Director George Morara said the proposed policy will strengthen copyright protection and provide new mechanisms to combat online piracy while improving royalty collection and enforcement for rights holders.
By Wangari Mwangi and Samuel Maina
