The quest to equip Africa with the latest technological advancements
By Jonathan Mbiriyamveka
The African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) and the Intellectual Property Rights and Innovation Project in Africa (AfrIPI) this week held a Workshop on Integration and Implementation of Intellectual Property Tools (IP) for the ARIPO Member States.
The workshop held at the ARIPO Secretariat in Harare, Zimbabwe saw at least two representatives from each of the following 23 countries: Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Maurtitius, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Somalia, South Africa, Spain, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
The workshop shared tools with ARIPO Member States as well as its Observer and Potential Member States to demonstrate the positive impact of these tools in IP offices.
IP tools offer immediate tangible benefits to the users of the IP system in Africa, such as, among others, quality and reliability and access to information.
At the same time, these tools generate efficiency gains for IP administrations and free up resources to expand the IP rights services offered.
The tools presented were TMview, DesignView, TMclass, DesignClass, the Common Examiner Support Tool (CESTO) and the e-filing system (linked with the Harmonised Database of Goods and Services).
- About IP Tools
TMview is an online consultation tool allowing any internet user to search for trade marks of all the trade mark offices involved in the initiative, free of charge. It is a multilingual and easyto-use tool that gives access to trade marks provided by the participating offices through a single and unique platform. Each office owns the content it makes available and is responsible for updating it daily. Find out more about the TMview on this website: https://www.tmdn.org/#/tools/1820385
DesignView is an online consultation tool allowing any internet user to search, free of charge, the designs of all the participating offices. It is multilingual, user-friendly and gives access to design applications and registrations provided by the participating offices through a single and unique platform. Each office owns the content it makes available and is responsible for its daily update. Find more about the DesignView on this website: https://www.tmdn.org/#/tools/1819847
TMclass – When applying to register a trade mark, you need to describe the goods and/or services for which you wish to protect your trade mark. TMclass is a free online tool that allows users to search, translate or classify goods and services when applying for a trade mark. TMclass is a tool in which all the terms that appear in the classification databases of each of the offices participating in the initiative can be accessed. Find more about the TMclass on this website: https://www.tmdn.org/#/tools/1819832
CESTO – The Common Examiners Support Tool (CESTO) provides a harmonised search of several databases to support examiners. CESTO is an automated and harmonised search tool which will perform searches for any given trade mark application. The tool provides information in relation to similar trade marks from an array of participating offices (whose trade marks are in TMview), similar trade marks from the same or similar owners from the same array of offices, and emblems and other heraldic devices held by WIPO. Find more about the CESTO on this website: https://www.tmdn.org/#/tools/1819838
- About ARIPO
ARIPO is an intergovernmental organisation that facilitates cooperation among its Member States in intellectual property matters. The purpose of ARIPO is to pool resources for the promotion, development and harmonisation of the IP laws and policies of ARIPO Member States. The objective of ARIPO, amongst others, is to establish common services and organs for IP coordination, development and harmonisation. The member states of ARIPO comprise of Botswana, The Kingdom of Estwatini, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, The Kingdom of Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Sao Tome & Principe, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. You can read more about ARIPO on www.aripo.org
- About AfrIPI
AfrIPI is a pan-African project that aims to support the European Union in creating, administering, utilising, protecting and enforcing intellectual property rights across Africa. It aligns with international and European best practices and supports the African Continental Free Trade Area and the African Union’s Agenda 2063. The overall objective of the AfrIPI project is to facilitate intra-African trade and African and European investment. You can read more about AfrIPI on www.afripi.org
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