Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania have committed to the protection of intellectual property rights as one way of ensuring their economies remain competitive.
Rwanda acceded to the Convention establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in 1983, as well as the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property and the Bern Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, in the same year.
In 2011 Rwanda became the latest African country to join the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO).
These conventions were brought under the WTO’s TRIPS Agreement in the 1986-1994 Uruguay Round. In 1996, Rwanda acceded to the WTO and has therefore been subject to the TRIPS Agreement ever since.
IP Law & IP Policy
The Rwandan government facilitated the enactment of an IP Law in 2009, and IP Policy in 2011 and ratified a number of IP related Treaties including the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), the Hague and the Madrid Agreements in 2009.
In 2011 Rwanda became the latest African country to join the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO).
Uganda is one of the countries that submitted a priority needs assessment for technical and financial cooperation under the Decision of November 2005 to extend the transitional period under Article 66.1 of the TRIPS Agreement in favour of LDC members.