In Nairobi, at a continental gathering on intellectual property, Kenya's copyright authority set out a plan to change how the country treats the ideas its people produce. The government is drafting a National Intellectual Property Policy and Strategy meant to turn knowledge into economic assets, so that invention and creativity can feed industry and draw investment rather than slipping away unrewarded. The reasons run deep: inventors have struggled to earn from their work, research has been underfunded, and the people who discover things rarely meet the people who make them. As the digital age
Kenya Moves to Overhaul IP Framework to Turn Local Ideas Into Economic Assets
Turn ideas into assets that power industrial growth
Mark
Why does a policy document matter to an ordinary inventor in Kenya?
Mimi
Because the complaint at the center of it is that innovators struggle to earn from what they invent. The policy targets funding gaps, low awareness and weak links to manufacturers.
Mark
And the copyright bill is a separate effort?
Mimi
Yes. The Copyright Amendment Bill 2026 deals with digital content, online infringement and AI. Wata said guidelines already exist on whether AI-generated works can be registered.
Luke
Careful, though. The source says guidelines were created, not what they conclude. We don't know whether AI works qualify.
Mark
Fair. What about the pharmaceutical angle?
Mimi
Wairimu Mbogo said over 70 per cent of medicines consumed in Africa come from abroad. She wants technology transfer and licensing to build local manufacturing.
Luke
That figure is her statement at the summit; the article gives no underlying study. And it's a claim about the continent, not Kenya specifically.
Mark
So what is actually settled?
Luke
Very little. The policy has had public participation but still awaits a validation workshop. Nothing says how it will be funded or when it takes effect.
Mimi
What is clear is the direction: coordinating KECOBO, KIPI, the Kenya Innovation Agency and the National Research Foundation.
Luke
Which is an intention to coordinate. Whether it works is not yet reported.
Il Polso
- A draft national policy has cleared public consultation but still waits on a stakeholder validation workshop before it can move forward.
- Inventors and creators are losing income as their work is copied online, and nobody is yet clearly accountable for the losses.
- Researchers and manufacturers rarely connect, leaving promising local innovations stranded before they reach a market.
- Pharmaceutical leaders warn that over 70 per cent of Africa's medicines are imported, pressing for technology transfer as the urgent remedy.
- Lawmakers are racing to decide whether AI-generated works can be registered, with the Copyright Amendment Bill 2026 still in progress.
In Nairobi, at a continental gathering on intellectual property, Kenya's copyright authority set out a plan to change how the country treats the ideas its people produce. The government is drafting a National Intellectual Property Policy and Strategy meant to turn knowledge into economic assets, so that invention and creativity can feed industry and draw investment rather than slipping away unrewarded. The reasons run deep: inventors have struggled to earn from their work, research has been underfunded, and the people who discover things rarely meet the people who make them. As the digital age reshapes how creative work is sold and copied, the policy and a parallel copyright bill are Kenya's attempt to decide who keeps the value of what its minds create.
At the All-Africa Intellectual Property Summit in Nairobi, Sharon Wata of the Kenya Copyright Board laid out a plan to change how Kenya treats the ideas its people produce. The government is drafting a National Intellectual Property Policy and Strategy designed to turn ideas and knowledge into products, services and investment. The draft has already passed public participation and now awaits a stakeholder validation workshop.
The policy answers real weaknesses: thin pathways to commercialisation, too little funding for research, low public awareness of rights, and gaps in enforcement. Together these have left inventors struggling to earn from what they create. It would bring together the Copyright Board, the Kenya Industrial Property Institute, the Kenya Innovation Agency and the National Research Foundation so that ideas are generated, protected and commercialised within one coordinated effort.
The problem runs well beyond the creative industries. Wairimu Mbogo, president of the Pharmaceutical Society of Kenya, noted that more than 70 per cent of medicines used in Africa come from abroad. She argued that stronger systems could build local manufacturing through technology transfer, licensing and partnerships between research institutions and drug makers, and that Africa must learn to manufacture and commercialise innovations, not merely protect them.
Sand Mba-Kalu, chair of the summit's organising committee, put the stakes in terms of where value lands. African firms are losing economic value to products whose ownership sits outside the continent, and he called for intellectual property to become part of everyday business and investment decisions. Alongside this, the Copyright Amendment Bill 2026 addresses digital infringement and whether AI-generated works qualify for registration, a question KECOBO has already drafted guidance on. What comes next is the validation workshop and the bill's passage.
At the All-Africa Intellectual Property Summit in Nairobi, Sharon Wata, deputy executive director of the Kenya Copyright Board (KECOBO), laid out a plan to change how Kenya treats the ideas its people produce. The government is drafting a National Intellectual Property Policy and Strategy, built around turning ideas and knowledge into economic assets that can drive industrial growth and attract investment.
The draft has already been through public participation. It now awaits a stakeholder validation workshop. Its stated purpose is to set up a coordinated framework for protecting innovations and helping businesses turn intellectual assets into products and services. It also aims to strengthen protection, commercialisation and enforcement of intellectual property rights.
The policy responds to specific weaknesses. Wata named weak commercialisation pathways, inadequate funding for research and innovation, low public awareness of intellectual property rights, and gaps in enforcement. Together, she said, these have limited Kenya's ability to benefit from its own innovations, and have left inventors struggling to earn from what they create. The source also points to weak links between researchers and manufacturers.
To address this, the policy draws several institutions together: KECOBO, the Kenya Industrial Property Institute (KIPI), the Kenya Innovation Agency and the National Research Foundation. The aim is to coordinate how intellectual property is generated, protected and commercialised.
A second track runs through legislation. The Copyright Amendment Bill 2026 seeks to deal with digital content, internet-based infringement and artificial intelligence. Wata said the amendments respond to a practical question: whether works generated with AI qualify for copyright registration. KECOBO has already created guidelines on that point. The backdrop is that businesses and content creators increasingly distribute and sell their work on digital platforms, which raises concerns about ownership, unauthorised use and the ability to collect royalties.
The problem reaches well beyond the creative industries, extending to manufacturing, agriculture, technology and pharmaceuticals. Wairimu Mbogo, president of the Pharmaceutical Society of Kenya, said more than 70 per cent of medicines consumed in Africa are sourced from abroad. She argued that stronger intellectual property systems could build local manufacturing capacity by encouraging technology transfer, licensing and partnerships between research institutions and drug manufacturers. Deliberate frameworks, she said, are needed to facilitate those things, along with research, commercialisation and local innovation. She added that Africa must go beyond protecting innovations and develop the ability to manufacture and commercialise them, and that African institutions and professionals need stronger capacity to develop, absorb and commercialise technology rather than depend on external innovation.
The summit's organizing committee chair, Sand Mba-Kalu, framed the stakes in terms of where value ends up. Concerns are growing that African businesses lose economic value from products and innovations whose ownership and commercial rights are held outside the continent. He said intellectual property should become part of business decisions, investment planning and industrial development, and that African enterprises need to keep more of the value their ideas generate instead of staying at the bottom of global production and commercialisation chains.
What to watch next is the stakeholder validation workshop for the policy, and the progress of the Copyright Amendment Bill 2026.
Citazioni salienti
The policy is founded on transforming ideas into assets that power innovation, creativity and industrial growth.— Sharon Wata, deputy executive director, Kenya Copyright Board
African institutions and professionals must be able to develop, absorb and commercialise technology rather than remain dependent on external innovation.— Wairimu Mbogo, President, Pharmaceutical Society of Kenya
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