Monday 21 May 2012

Jeremy

A to Z of official African websites No.49: Tanzania

Nearly 50!  Today Kingsley Egbuonu reports for the 49th time on the state of official intellectual property websites in Africa's many jurisdictions. This alphabetical tour now takes him to 'T' for Tanzania -- and this is what Kingsley has to say about it:
Overview

Tanzania is a Contracting Party to a number of treaties on intellectual property including the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property and the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works. Tanzania is also a Member State of ARIPO.

Copyright Office

• The Copyright Society of Tanzania (COSOTA) is the competent office responsible for copyright and related rights in Tanzania. 
• The website for this office is www.cosota-tz.org.

Industrial Property Office

• The Business Registrations and Licensing Agency (BRELA) is the competent office responsible for the administration of intellectual property rights in Tanzania. 
• The website for this office is www.brela-tz.org

Social Media Presence

None found.

Intellectual Property update in Tanzania

Afro-IP has reported on various developments of practical significance in recent times including  here and here.

Conclusion

Afro-IP found useful and functioning websites for both IP offices in Tanzania; however, while BRELA’s website is up-to-date, COSOTA’s isn’t. Nevertheless, we do at least have something positive to draw from when compared to other members of ARIPO, as highlighted during our visit to Swaziland here. We also learnt that UK design rights owners can extend their rights to Tanzania. The country seems to be on the right track, but it still has more to do online.
Kingsley tweets as @IPinAfrica

Jeremy

Jeremy

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