Uganda’s Bemanya Twebaze Elected President of World Intellectual Property Organization

  • by Emmanuel Nuwamanya
  • September 2, 2019

The Registrar General of the Uganda Registration Services Bureau has been elected the President of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Advisory Committee on Enforcement (ACE).

ACE was established by the 2002 WIPO General Assemblies with a mandate to carry out technical assistance and coordination in the field of enforcement (norm-setting is explicitly excluded from the mandate).

Bemanya becomes the first Ugandan to hold this position. The Ugandan will be deputized by U.K. and Peru in this respect.

The Registrar General will be leading 192 Countries that are members of WIPO in the coordination, sharing of experience and ensuring a balanced approach in the enforcement of intellectual property among others. Uganda became a member of WIPO in 1973.

It is important to note that Uganda is one of the leading countries in enforcement of intellectual property and has achieved this through good leadership, enhanced law enforcement, stakeholder engagements, coordination and synergies with enforcement agencies, explaining why Bemanya could have been elected.