Also
at the IP Committee (7th Annual Business Law Conference of the Section on Business Law (SBL), Mrs Nima Salman Mann (Director, Commercial Law Department
of the Trademarks, Patent and Designs Registry) spoke on the Administration of
Industrial Property and related matters in Nigeria.
Before-and-after
pictures of the trademark filing room were shown as evidence of the strides
which Mrs Mann and her team have taken since she assumed her position as
Director of the Registry.
Mrs
Mann was asked the following questions:
What
needs to be done to upgrade the TM Registry to the status of a full commission?
Mrs Mann: There are presently 4 Bills
before the National Assembly in that
regard. These bills are from different interest groups and there is no harmony.
In any event, the Executive Council is currently looking at a recommendation.
Mrs
Araba circulated (for viewing only) newspaper clips where it was reported that the
Trademark and Patent Registry and the Nigerian Copyright Commission have been
merged to form a new commission (Nigerian Intellectual Property Commission)
which would now be under the supervision of the Ministry of Justice.
Could
you provide us with email addresses and telephone numbers to which we may
direct our enquiries to?
Mrs Mann: The Registry currently has no
telephone number that can work at all times. Please send your emails to iponigeria@yahoo.com (This Leo wonders why the Registry is still
using a yahoo account in this century)
Several
initiatives exist for an IP Policy: Have you seen this policy and are you able
to continue them?
Mrs Mann: WIPO is sending a consultant
to look at remodelling the Registry and merging the work flow. The consultant
will come up with a harmonised IP policy document.
Why
not get students and corp members
to assist in getting the filing room in shape? This has worked in South Africa.
Mrs
Mann: We have tried this in the past but we discovered that these students,
apart from lacking experience, are also being manipulated to remove documents
from files. WIPO has just shared a filing format which we are implementing. (This Leo asks, “What ever happened to using
CCTV
cameras?” “Were the students left with no supervision?” “Do Registry employees
work without supervision too?”)
There
were also comments and suggestions about having IPR holders provide funds to
the Registry to enable it conduct raids on counterfeiters, developing a proper national
IP Policy document and encouraging development of local content.
On
Commercialisation of IP in an emerging economy, Mrs
Araba spoke on
the need to review and adjust legislative framework to facilitate e-commerce
and develop capacity-building programs. She wondered if Nigeria has the
capacity to pool patents or own a patent which might be worth cross-licensing.
Mr Adeogun (one of
the Discussants) emphasized the need for locally-owned patents. According to
him, products developed from such patents will be better matched to the country’s
needs. He cited the example of the development and sale of insecticide-treated
mosquito nets which are to be used on beds. How many Africans sleep on beds, he
wondered?
