BMatanga IP Attorneys is proud to announce that our Managing Attorney, Miss Brenda Matanga was duly elected as the Chairperson of the Working Group on the Improvement of ARIPO Protocols Relating to Industrial Property at the 7^th Session of the Working Group held here in Harare from the 3^rd – 4^th of May 2018.

The Working Group is mandated with discussing amendments to the Banjul Protocol, Harare Protocol, and the Swakopmund Protocol, to ensure improvement on their use as well as harmonize the Protocols with international treaties. The Working Group is comprised of the member states, ARIPO Secretariat and users of the Protocols such as Patent Agents, Attorneys and organizations involved in Intellectual Property from the 19 ARIPO member states (Botswana, The Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Somalia, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe).

One of ARIPO’s key mandate is to is to promote the harmonization and development of the intellectual property laws in the region and this special committee, plays a big role in ensuring that this objective is met. Once the IP laws speak to each other, it makes regional economic integration a reality and makes the trade terrain a lot easier for investors that are coming into the continent. Ultimately, a one-stop shop into 19 countries would ease the challenges that are associated with trying to protect your intellectual property in 19 different countries, individually.

With our Managing Attorney at the helm of such important and essential legal developments in the IP space of the African region, our Clients can rest assured that their interests will be protected.  We strive to discern ourselves as attorneys of choice in this area of law and maintain a holistic understanding of the IP landscape in the African continent.  As a result of our expert knowledge of the terrain, Clients are guaranteed a world class service, characterized by tailor-made solutions for their needs.

Well done Madam Chair! We wish you nothing but the very best in this new role.