The Ministry of Trade and Regional Integration recently hosted a workshop in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. The workshop focused on Ethiopia's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the Ethiopian government's aim of becoming a member of the WTO by December 2026.
An expert team of professors from Canada was commissioned by The Ministry of Trade and Regional Integration in order to provide assistance and insights on the WTO's Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). The aim is to help align Ethiopia with other international intellectual property commitments and to improve and promote the intellectual property system at the domestic level.
The workshop covered an extensive review and analysis of existing policy, legal, administration, and enforcement frameworks, governing Intellectual Property (IP) across all sectors in Ethiopia. An assessment was made of the differences between Ethiopia's current IP frameworks and the standards outlined in the WTO TRIPS Agreement, as well as the array of IP treaties managed by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and other international agencies. Tailored TRIPS policy insights and approaches specific to Ethiopia were formulated, along with a roadmap for integrating TRIPS obligations into the WTO accession process. Additionally, suggestions were provided for advancing Ethiopia's IP infrastructure in subsequent phases.
The workshop is a tremendously positive and progressive step in the alignment of the IP frameworks of Ethiopia and the harmonisation of Ethiopia's IP laws and regulations to international standards.
Source: Accelerating Ethiopia's WTO Accession
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