Abel Varney has been an agribusiness entrepreneur for years but was unaware of intellectual property (IP) until a year ago.
His first encounter with IP came at a World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)-sponsored IP Management Clinic (IPMC) program for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Liberia — the first of its kind.
By Robin Dopoe, Contributing Writer
“My business, Agro Links Enterprise, has been operating since 2021, marketing locally farmed food products. But it wasn’t until last year that I learned about intellectual property and my rights as a business owner,” says Abel as he reflects on the gravity of his words.
Abel, like many small business owners in Liberia, is only now becoming aware of IP — something he believes could dramatically change the SME landscape if more awareness were created. While the IP Management Clinic is the longest IP training program ever held in Liberia, the concept of IP remains in its infancy, as limited awareness means many entrepreneurs learn about it too late and suffer losses as a result.
Abel, who now owns a trademark for his business, Agro Links, says that a sustained level of IP awareness, similar to that provided by the IP Clinic, is needed to ensure that more Liberian businesses do not miss out on IP, which is economically essential.
“There’s so much talent in this country, but without awareness, we’ll never see their full potential,” he says. “We need workshops, seminars, and more to teach business owners about IP.”
Sandra Perkins-Lighe agrees, recounting her experience of revealing too much information about her business when she didn’t understand IP. She says this is a common problem among entrepreneurs across the country, who openly share proprietary methods and formulas without recognizing the economic risks.
“In Liberia, it’s quite common for small business owners to openly share detailed information about their product processes, including procedures, methods, and formulas,” Sandra explains. “While this openness signals trust and transparency, it also puts businesses at risk, especially in a competitive and emerging market. And this is happening at an alarming rate due to a lack of education.”
The concept of IP, while complex, is fundamentally about creations of the mind — everything from art, music, and literature to inventions and designs used in commerce. However, Liberia lags in IP awareness and registration, leaving creators and innovators vulnerable to exploitation.
As a result, many entrepreneurs in Liberia fail to realize that the logos they create for their businesses or the software they develop are forms of IP. When protected, these assets provide ownership, preventing others from using, copying, or profiting from them without permission.
A patent, for instance, is a form of IP protection that covers new inventions or significant improvements to existing inventions, granting the inventor exclusive rights to use and commercialize the idea for a period of time, usually 20 years.
Copyrights, on the other hand, protect artistic and literary works like books, music, and films, giving creators exclusive rights to reproduce and distribute their work for about 50 years after the creator’s lifetime. Trademarks protect distinctive signs, logos, or names that differentiate one business’s goods or services from another, while designs safeguard the appearance of products, such as shapes or patterns.
These forms of IP are abundant in the Liberian market, and Sandra argues that if most or all of them were protected, the impact on the economy would be transformative. Take the case of Liberia’s burgeoning digital sector, which includes app developers, content creators, and software engineers, or the growing fashion scene, with many young designers creating unique, culturally relevant clothing and accessories.
Similarly, the booming music industry features producers and songwriters who spend countless hours honing their craft, creating music that resonates with Liberians at home and abroad. Yet, despite the emergence of these IP-rich sectors, many people involved have never heard of IP, let alone know how to begin the registration process.
Sandra and Abel attribute this gap to years of low investment in IP education across the country, although they acknowledge the recent efforts by the Liberia Intellectual Property Office (LIPO) to reach more people.
Their praise follows LIPO’s success with the WIPO IP Management Clinic, as well as its organization of a three-day IP Assets Management Workshop for SMEs from four counties in collaboration with the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO). The workshop, held from September 3 to 5, brought together over 200 participants from various business backgrounds and covered topics ranging from trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets to IP commercialization strategies, technology transfer, and the role of IP in research and development.
Still, Sandra and Abel say more must be done to ensure that Liberian creators, entrepreneurs, and innovators receive the protection they need to succeed in the modern economy.
“In a world where creativity and innovation are vital to economic growth, more IP education is crucial. It’s the first step toward meaningful change,” Abel says. “There’s this perception in Liberia that intellectual property is only for big businesses or international companies. That’s a misconception that needs to be corrected.”
Of late, Liberia has recently seen significant social and business trends that highlight the importance of IP. For example, the increasing use of social media platforms for marketing and business has underscored the significance of brand identity, a core component of trademark law.
Many small businesses in Liberia use Instagram and Facebook to promote their products, but few are aware that registering their business name or logo as a trademark can protect them from copycats looking to capitalize on their hard-earned reputations.
So, can awareness improve IP registration in Liberia? According to Sandra and Abel, the answer is yes, but the process will require more IP education. They believe that when Liberia embraces a culture that values and protects intellectual property, the country can unlock its creative potential and boost its economy.
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