By Yunus S Saliu
SNA IP Academy Gambia in collaboration with SN Anku IP Firm on Friday jointly held an Intellectual Properties (IP) awareness training seminar.
The seminar took place at the Gambia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) Complex in Bijilo and was held jointly online with participants from three countries – Nigeria, Ghana, and The Gambia.
Yusupha Jallow, Managing Partner SN Anku Gambia made a presentation on the Benefits of Intellectual Property to Creators.
He said IP Rights refers to creations of the mind which according to the WIPO “such as inventions; literary and artistic works; designs; and symbols, names and images used in commerce.” And also, he continued, according to the EU “Intellectual property refers to an intangible property right which is enjoyed by law after the engagement in intellectual creative conducts, which cover a range of intangible property rights: patent, copyrights, trademark, design right and an indication of the original.”
The benefits of IP, he said, include the promotion of creativity and innovation, economic incentives, protection of investments, encouragement of collaboration and knowledge-sharing, restriction of access to knowledge and information, inflated costs and monopolies, and also, legal complexity and litigation.
He went further to dilate on collective management organizations (CMO) saying these non-profit organizations are responsible for licensing, tracking, and collecting publishing royalties earned, and then paying their members the revenues collected through an approved system agreed by the members of the said society.
Mr. Jallow identified the importance of CMO as simplifying the management of member IPRs, efficiency, and productivity in the negotiation, monitoring, licensing, and collecting of revenue, stronger authority in the enforcement of infringements of IPRs, benefit from experience and expertise, support members during difficult times in careers and so on.
Sainabou Sissoho, a Registrar General on behalf of the Gambia Attorney General delivered a remarkable speech on Intellectual Property (IP) Rights and the youth in the creative industry.
She iterated that IP rights are fundamental for safeguarding the creative output in the vibrant landscape of the creative industry of “our young talents.”
“It is imperative that we equip youth and women of our country with knowledge about their rights, be it copyrights, trademarks, or patents to protect their creative work,” she urged while sharing a local story of a young entrepreneur called Mariam Sarr.
Meanwhile, she dilated on how SMEs can use IP tools to grow their businesses, while Onyinyechukwu M Dotsey, Head of Chambers SN Anku IP Firm Nigeria among others made a presentation on copyright issues in The Digital Era/World.
