Trademarks in Africa: bringing clarity to a complicated picture

Managing IP is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 1-2 Paris Gardens, London, SE1 8ND

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2025

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

Trademarks in Africa: bringing clarity to a complicated picture

Sponsored by

spoor-fisher-400px.png
globe-3559726.jpg

Matthew Costard and Nola Pontes of Spoor & Fisher Jersey look at some of the issues that arise with trademark searching in countries that form the continent of Africa

Not yet digital

There are still countries in Africa that have not yet digitised their trademark records. These are Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sierra Leone.

It may be digital, but is it complete?

The answer’s no – in the following African countries, electronic searches need to be supplemented by manual searches: Ghana, Nigeria, Sudan, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.

It should be noted that in Sudan, searches cannot be undertaken at present due to the ongoing unrest, but national trademarks are searched manually and international registrations electronically.

Restricted access to electronic databases

In Nigeria and Tanzania, access to the electronic database is restricted. In the case of Nigeria, the electronic register is incomplete, whereas in Tanzania, only Tanzanian nationals can access the records.

Madrid not showing

Ghana and Sierra Leone belong to the Madrid Protocol, yet international registrations designating these countries do not appear in the national databases.

Examination for prior rights

Prior rights examination does not occur in all of Africa, but it does (to a varying degree) in the following jurisdictions: Algeria, Angola, Botswana, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, The Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, the African Intellectual Property Organisation (or OAPI, the regional registration system that covers Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea (Conakry), Guinea-Bissau, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal and Togo), Rwanda, Seychelles, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda (where a pre-filing search is mandatory), Zambia and Zimbabwe.

It can be tricky in…

Madagascar, where the only recourse to a registry refusal is an appeal to a court of first instance, followed by a final decision by an appeal court; Sudan, where a registry refusal is likewise referred to a court; and Libya, where appeals must be submitted to a designated committee that has never convened.

Journals

In Africa, there is often a long delay between filing and publication – 24 months is not uncommon. This can make relying on published applications risky, particularly in the following jurisdictions: Ethiopia, The Gambia, Ghana, Libya, Malawi, Nigeria, OAPI, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

The LMG Life Sciences Americas Awards is thrilled to present the 2025 shortlist
A new order has brought the total security awarded to a Canadian tech company to $45 million, the highest-ever by an Indian court in an IP case
Andrew Blattman reflects on how IP practices have changed and shares his hopes for increased AI use and better performance on the stock market
The firm said major IP developments included advising on a ‘landmark’ deal involving green hydrogen production, as well as two major acquisitions
The appointments follow other recent moves in the European market as firms look to bolster their UPC offerings
Deborah Kirk discusses why IP and technology have become central pillars in transactions and explains why clients need practically minded lawyers
IP STARS, Managing IP’s accreditation title, reveals its latest rankings for patent work, including which firms are moving up
Leaders at US law firms explain what attorneys can learn from AI cases involving Meta and Anthropic, and why the outcomes could guide litigation strategies
Attorneys reveal the trademark and copyright trends they’ve noticed within the first half of 2025
Senior leaders at TE Connectivity and Clarivate explain how they see the future of innovation
Gift this article