A trademark is territorial. A mark registered in Tanzania under the Trade and Service Marks Act, Cap. 326 protects the owner in Tanzania and nowhere else. For a business that sells only in the domestic market, that is enough. For one that exports, franchises or expands across East and Southern Africa, protection that stops at the border is a liability - and this is where the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) becomes relevant.
First, Get Domestic Protection Right
Regional strategy begins at home. In Tanzania, trademark rights are secured by registration with the Business Registrations and Licensing Agency (BRELA). The process involves a search to check availability, filing an application in the relevant class or classes under the international classification, examination, publication for opposition, and finally registration. Registration confers the exclusive right to use the mark for the goods or services covered and the ability to enforce against infringers. A business should register its core marks in every class in which it genuinely trades or plans to trade.
What ARIPO Offers
ARIPO is a regional intellectual property organisation whose members are largely English-speaking African states. For trademarks, the relevant instrument is the Banjul Protocol, which allows an applicant to file a single application - either directly with ARIPO or through the industrial property office of a member state - and designate the member states in which protection is sought. Instead of filing separately in each country, the applicant files once and designates many.
The practical advantages are:
- a single application and a single set of formalities;
- designation of multiple member states in one step;
- centralised administration through the ARIPO office;
- potential cost and time savings compared with multiple national filings.
An Important Caveat on Tanzania
Tanzanian businesses should understand the position of their home jurisdiction carefully. Mainland Tanzania’s participation in the Banjul Protocol has historically been the subject of debate, because the Protocol has not been fully domesticated into mainland law in the way some practitioners consider necessary for an ARIPO designation to have automatic domestic effect. Zanzibar’s position differs again, as it maintains its own trademark registry. The safe course is to treat regional protection as a complement to, not a substitute for, direct national registration in the markets that matter most - and to take advice on where an ARIPO designation will be given full effect.
Choosing a Filing Strategy
The right approach depends on the footprint of the business. A useful way to think about it:
- Domestic only: register nationally with BRELA in the relevant classes.
- Several ARIPO markets: consider a Banjul Protocol application designating those states, while confirming the domestic-effect position for each.
- Key markets outside ARIPO, or global brands: consider the Madrid System for international trademark registration, and direct national filings where certainty is essential.
These routes are not mutually exclusive. Many businesses combine national registration in their most important markets with a regional or international filing to cover the wider footprint economically.
Maintaining and Enforcing the Right
Registration is not the end of the task. Trademarks must be renewed periodically, genuinely used to avoid vulnerability to cancellation for non-use, and actively enforced against infringers and imitators. A registered right that is never policed loses value. Businesses should monitor the market and the trademark journals for conflicting applications and act promptly on infringements.
Key Takeaways
- Trademark protection is territorial; a Tanzanian registration does not protect you abroad.
- Secure robust national registration in Tanzania first, across all relevant classes.
- ARIPO’s Banjul Protocol can extend protection across member states from a single filing - but confirm the domestic-effect position for each designated country.
- For markets beyond ARIPO, weigh the Madrid System and direct national filings.
- Renew, use and enforce your marks to keep them strong.
A coherent regional trademark strategy protects the brand a business has invested in building. The organisation that plans its filings around its actual and intended markets - rather than reacting after a copycat appears - is the one whose brand remains its own.
For general information only - this material does not constitute legal advice.
George Bega is an Associate Lawyer and an active member of the firm’s Dispute Resolution practice, specialising in litigation and advisory services. He supports clients in resolving disputes…
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