Industry to bear additional cost of anti-countfeit law

By , K24 Digital
On Mon, 20 May, 2019 15:20 | 2 mins read

Fred Aminga @faminga

Proposed amendments to the Anti-Counterfeit Act could put more pressure on the ease of doing business in Kenya going by exorbitant charges on various application forms.

Despite being hyped as one that would benefit local industries, it will be a burden to small and medium enterprises, going by the hefty charges compared to charges by Kenya Industrial Property Institute (KIPI) and other jurisdictions with similar charges.

In the new regulations, application to record which is in Form ACA 19 will cost Sh200,000 while it is free in South Africa (SA). To make applications to change ownership using Form ACA 21, it will cost local industries Sh200,000 while it is free in SA and China, but charged $80 (Sh8,000) in the US.

Change of name costs Sh100,000 in Kenya but goes for $80 (Sh8,000) in US, however, it is given for free in China and SA.

“There is no justification for some of these rates which are in some cases up to 66 times more than the KIPI charges and similar charges elsewhere,” said Job Wanjohi, head of policy, research and advocacy at the Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) during the stakeholders caucus.

But Anti Counterfeit Authority (ACA) chair Flora Mutahi said the rates might look high because they had been consolidated.

“Firms pay Sh18,000 for a single raid, for example, but we get more than ten raids from one firm which would amount to more than Sh180,000,” she said.

She said they came up with a lumpsum fee to ensure that ACA can carry as many raids as possible at any time without going back to local industry players.

Arrest fakes

Speaking on the sidelines of a forum to review the proposed amendments to the regulations for the Anti-Counterfeit Act, stakeholders hailed the changes saying they will make it harder for counterfeiters to get away with the crime.

“Illicit brews have been our biggest concern in the alcoholic beverage industry, and we believe these amendments provide ACA with a robust legal mechanism to fight the menace. We now look forward to full implementation of these new amendments accompanied by a strong set of regulations to reinforce the changes,’’ said Gordon Mutugi, chair of the Alcoholic Beverage Association of Kenya.

Other notable amendments to the Act include extending scope of counterfeiting to include impounding goods counterfeited outside Kenya. Previously, this was limited to counterfeiting carried out in Kenya, which means ACA can now impound items counterfeited outside the country at the entry points.

Consumers will now play a pivotal role in promoting the fight against counterfeit products as end users. A consumer may lay a complaint if they suspect an item is a counterfeit with the ACA for investigations. Previously, only complaints from trademark owners could be investigated.

Investigative powers

The Act gives an inspector the power to investigate any offence relating to counterfeit even when the same is not an offence under the Act. This has been appreciated by industry players who felt they were not protected when there were grey areas.