Most African countries have their own IP laws, (some of which
were inherited from colonial powers) or modified versions of the
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.
Many of these laws have proved ineffective against the debilitating
effects of copyright infringement.
The protection and enforcement of Intellectual Property rights
is pivotal to the development of the creative industry. In
recognition of this, some African countries have tried to
invigorate creative endeavour by reviewing extant laws. We examine
recent developments in copyright enforcement in some African
countries.
Ethiopia
Three years ago, Ethiopia introduced a new
framework for legal, policy and institutional solutions to aid the
development of its IP sector. Previously, Ethiopia's Penal and
Civil Codes of 1957 and 1960 respectively, contained provisions to
deal with copyright issues. While the Civil Code focused on the
protection of ownership of Literary and
