A meeting on
the Banjul Protocol on trademark registration took place on 7 November in
Maputo. The meeting was organized by Braz & Associados, Lda and was
attended by the General Director of ARIPO, Dr. Fernando dos Santos, IPI
representatives, Dr. Julieta Nhane (Director of the Central Services of
Trademarks and Patents) and Mr. Emídio Rafael (Coordinator of the Legal
Department), Official Agents of Industrial Property (AOPI) and other interested
parties.
Against the
background of the country's recent adherence to the protocol, the purpose of
the meeting was to illustrate the impact of this important instrument and to
disseminate information on how Mozambican agents can take advantage of it and
even the other protocols managed by ARIPO.
In his
opening remarks, the Baipa partner, Sérgio Braz, pointed out that after the
concerns expressed by the AOPIs over the years in which the country's accession
to the protocol lasted, and having now been consummated, this was the moment to
move on, that is, to understand and master the mechanisms and procedures, to
understand the processes and to outline strategies for a better use of the
situation that is approaching.
On her behalf,
Dr. Julieta discussed the accession process, explaining that it was a long
process in which the various interested parties were heard. She explained that the
accession is justified by the fact that Mozambique is a member of ARIPO and
therefore it makes perfect sense not to stay out from the Banjul Protocol, that
is, the integration of the country into that organization must be complete and,
that is, within all the protocols of the organization.
The General Director
of ARIPO, however, as the main speaker of the event, elaborated on the
organization's history, its structure, the numerous services it provides, its
relationship with the national offices of the Member States and its mandate
regarding the several types of intellectual property rights.
Regarding the
Banjul Protocol, he expressed its sympathy with AOPIs' fears that this
accession may cost them a certain amount of work, but has ensured that regional
integration is irreversible, which means that cooperation must be complete and
not a cooperation of convenience per protocol. Building on his vision of
intellectual property geared to social, technological and economic development,
he has listed, inter alia, the following advantages of adhering to the Banjul
Protocol:
• Mozambican
entrepreneurs are now able to protect their rights (trademarks) in all ARIPO
Member States, which is not possible in the current situation.
• Since they
are accredited to ARIPO, the Mozambican AOPIs will become more exposed
internationally, which means that they will be increasingly sought by
international agents and firm to register their trademarks in the region via
ARIPO.
• ARIPO has
its procedures for registering intellectual property rights digitalized, making
processes simpler and more flexible.
To not waste these
advantages, Mr. dos Santos suggested that Mozambican AOPIs should be more
attentive to what is happening at ARIPO and at international level so that they
can take advantage of the many opportunities offered, such as the training
given by ARIPO and WIPO (both short-term and master's degree courses), annual
work meetings between ARIPO and IP Agents, specialized international annual
meetings, among many other networking opportunities. This is to say that the
AOPIs have the challenge of becoming more and more professional and
specialized, making their activity increasingly visible at the regional and
international levels.
It should be
mentioned that the accession process will be concluded when the Government of
Mozambique deposits the instruments of ratification at ARIPO, and three months
later the protocol will enter into force in the country.
