ARIPO-Registered Trademarks Unenforceable in Tanzania

• ARIPO trademark registrations held unenforceable in Tanzania
• Tanzania’s designation under ARIPO suspended
• Protocol domestication in pipeline
• Importance of domestic registration clarified

On 23 October 2025, the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) issued a notice announcing that, following instructions from the Business Registrations and Licensing Agency (BRELA), Tanzania is ineligible for designation under the Banjul Protocol until further notice. The notice follows a recent judgment of the Court of Appeal of Tanzania (the Court) in Lakairo Industries Group Co. Limited & Others v. Kenafrica Group Co. Limited & Others (Civil Appeal No. 593 of 2022) (the judgment). The said judgement confirmed that Tanzania has not domesticated the Banjul Protocol (the Protocol), and therefore, trademarks registered through ARIPO’s Banjul system have no legal effect under Tanzanian law.

In its notice, ARIPO assured users and stakeholders that Tanzania is actively pursuing the legal, administrative, and diplomatic processes necessary to domesticate the Protocol, after which eligibility for ARIPO designations will be restored.

In the Judgment, the Court addressed a long-standing question regarding the territorial application of ARIPO trademark rights. The Court held that trade mark rights are inherently territorial, arising only upon registration under Tanzania’s Trade and Service Marks Act, Cap. 326 [R.E. 2023] (the Act). Although Tanzania is a member of ARIPO, the Court reiterated that the Protocol on Marks has never been domesticated into Tanzanian law. As such, ARIPO trade mark registrations cannot be enforced within the country, nor can they serve as a basis for infringement or expungement actions. The Court emphasized that foreign or regional filings do not substitute for national registration, citing both statutory provisions and international principles under the Paris Convention, which safeguard the independence of national trade mark rights. Consequently, the Court struck out the claims premised on ARIPO and foreign registrations, reaffirming that enforceable rights must originate from national filings.

It is worth noting that ARIPO’s suspension of Tanzania from designation under the Protocol therefore operationalizes the position affirmed by the Court. Both developments collectively reinforce the principle that trade mark protection in Tanzania is strictly territorial and dependent on local registration. Businesses and practitioners should take note that ARIPO trademarks currently have no legal force in Tanzania and that new ARIPO filings cannot designate the country until relevant legislative reforms are enacted.

Further to the above, it is important for brand owners seeking protection in Tanzania to continue filing their trademarks directly with the BRELA under the Act. It is prudent for right-holders to review existing ARIPO portfolios and ensure that brands are also protected through parallel national filings. Going forward, stakeholders should closely monitor the anticipated domestication process which is expected to integrate ARIPO mechanisms into Tanzania’s intellectual property framework which is admittedly long overdue. Until then, the judgment and notice together underline that enforceable trade mark rights within Tanzania remain a matter of domestic registration, not regional designation.

To read the Judgment click here

To read ARIPO’s Notice click here