OAPI | forchaklawfirms

The African Intellectual Property Organization

FORCHAK IP & LEGAL ADVISORY is duly accredited amongst others to practice intellectual property and similar matters as defined hereunder at the OAPI region.

The African Intellectual Property Organization widely known by its French acronym as “OAPI” was created by the Bangui Agreement of March, 2nd, 1977, and subsequently amended in 1999 is responsible for implementing and applying the common administrative procedures deriving from a uniform system for the protection of industrial property, as well as the provision of international agreements in this field to which the member states of the Organization have acceded, and avoiding services related to industrial property.

The Organization further seeks to centralize, coordinate, and disseminate information of all kinds relating to the protection of literary and artistic property and it also seeks to promote economic development of its member states notably by means of effective protection of intellectual and related rights.

The Bangui Agreement contains ten (10) Annexes, which is applicable in its entirety to every State that ratifies it. The Annexes include:

1. Patent

2. Utility models

3. Trademark and service marks

4. Industrial designs

5. Trade names

6. Geographical indications

7. Literary and artistic property

8. Protection against unfair competition

9. Layout designs (topographies) of integrated circuits

10. Plant variety protection

11. Copyrights

12. IP Watch and monitory services

The member states of the OAPI

The member states of the OAPI moved by the desire to promote the effective contribution of intellectual property to the development of their States and to protect intellectual property rights on their territories in a uniform a manner as possible, undertake to accede the following Treaties and Conventions to wit:

- The Paris Convention for the protection of industrial property of March 20th, 1883, as revised at Stockholm on July 14th 1967;

- The Berne Convention for the protection of Literary and Artistic Works of September 9th, 1886 as amended at Paris on July 24th, 1971 and/or the Universal Copyright Convention as revised at Paris on July 24th 1971;

- The Hague Agreement relating to International Deposit of Industrial Designs of November 6th 1925, as revised at the Hague on November 28th 1960 and at Stockholm on July 14th 1967;

- The Lisbon Agreement for the Protection of Appellation of origin and their international registration of October 31st, 1958, as revised at Stockholm on July 14th, 1967;

- The Convention establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization “WIPO”, signed at Stockholm on July 14th 1967;

- The Patent Convention Treaty (PCT) signed at Washington on June 19th , 1970;

- The Nairobi Treaty on the Protection of the Olympic Symbol of 1981;

- The Budapest Treaty on the international Recognition of Micro-organisms for the purposes of Patent Procedure of 1977;

- The International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants of December 2nd, 1961, as revised at Geneva on November 10th, 1972, October 23rd, 1978 and March 19th, 1991;

- The Marrakesh Agreement establishing the World Trade Organization, including the Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights of April 15th, 1994;

- The Trade Registration Treaty signed at Vienna on June 12th, 1973;

- The Rome Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations of 1961;

The OAPI is made up of Seventeen African countries mentioned below and its headquarters is located in Yaounde (Republic of Cameroon) and national liaison offices in each member state. The most significant importance of the Organization to economic investors is that an intellectual property right protected in one country is valid, binding and enforceable in the entire region of its member states namely:

1. The Republic of Benin

2. The Republic of Burkina Faso

3. The Republic of Cameroon

4. The Centrafrican Republic

5. The Republic of Congo

6. The Republic of Cote d’Ivoire

7. The Republic of Equatorial Guinea

8. The Republic of Gabon

9. The Republic of Guinea

10. The Republic of Guinea-Bissau

11. The Republic of Mali

12. The Islamic Republic of Mauritania

13. The Republic of Niger

14. The Republic of Senegal

15. The Republic of Tchad

16. The Republic of Togo

17. The Union of Comoros

Member States

Therefore in terms of intellectual property practice, the OAPI is considered as a single region. The official languages at the OAPI are English and French. Any document to be admissible at the Registry which is not written in the above languages must be accompanied by a verified translated version in either English or French.