WIPO 33rd IGC Session Puts Traditional Cultural Expressions (TCEs) on the...

The WIPO-IGC recently commenced the next installment of its deliberations for a text-based instrument that focuses on the protection of traditional cultural expressions (TCEs), pursuant to its mandate. There are two scheduled forums on TCEs beginning Feb 27-March 3 and to be completed in June 2017, which will round off the Committee’s work for the 2016-17 biennium.

Access to Knowledge in Africa: The Role of Copyright

This 2010 edited volume, Access to Knowledge in Africa: The Role of Copyright, has chapters outlining the African Copyright and Access to Knowledge (ACA2K) network’s research findings on the copyright environments of eight African countries.

Maker spaces in developing countries: Sites of innovation despite simultaneous challenges

by Mohamed Hosny In the past few years, there have been several initiatives to help entrepreneurs introduce new creative and innovative products that break from...

The Intellectual Property Treaty Landscape in Africa, 1885 to 2015

This paper maps the 130-year history of the IP treaty landscape governing the protection of, and access to, knowledge in Africa.

Open AIR North Africa Distinguished Speaker Series: Ibrahim Al-Safadi on Makerspaces...

On 10 December 2016, as part of the RiseUp Summit in Cairo, Open AIR’s North Africa hub hosted their first Distinguished Speaker event with Ibrahim Al-Safadi, the CEO of Luminous Education. The Access to Knowledge for Development Center (A2K4D) invited Al-Safadi to speak about the role of “makerspaces” to tackle unemployment and to share his experiences in how to create a makerspace that ensures that the individuals involved end up with jobs.

Les défis d’étendre Open AIR dans des pays africains francophones

Le travail panafricain comprend plusieurs défis, entre autre la grandeur du continent, sa diversité, les différences juridiques, et la complexité des langues. Les défis sont particulièrement marqués pour l’innovation africaine. Il y a deux organismes régionaux dans le domaine de la propriété intellectuelle, en plus de l’Organisation mondiale de la propriété intellectuelle, ce qui souligne la diversité et les divisions linguistiques et régionales. Pour Open AIR, un réseau de recherche qui travaille dans de différents domaines de l’innovation et la propriété intellectuelle, on rencontre plusieurs défis à cause de cette diversité.

Building Startup Resilience in Ghana Through Policy Support

By Yaw Adu-Gyamfi Startups in Ghana struggle with access to technical support services, sustainable market linkages and funding to keep them afloat in the initial...

How Women’s Economic Empowerment Is Tackling Poverty in Southwest Nigeria

By Esther Adekunbi Mobolayo I started my QES in January 2020 but, within months, the COVID-19 pandemic broke out. At first, it appeared as if...

Professor Carys Craig Infuses the Open Access Movement with Feminism at...

Is intellectual property (IP) gender neutral? No. Neither is the dominant discourse on innovation. Recognizing this bias is the first step toward remedying it.

Open Science, Intellectual Property and the South African mRNA Vaccine Hub

Authored by: Omowamiwa Kolawole, Caroline B. Ncube, Jeremy de Beer Abstract: During, and in the aftermath of, the global COVID-19 pandemic, there were strong calls for...