The creative industry has the potential to transform the African continent through economic growth and narrative change. According to UNESCO, the creative sector could create twenty million jobs and over $20 billion in revenue per year in Africa. From the global rise of Afrobeat artists such as Burna Boy and Tems to the successful production of African films such as Iwaju, it is clear that the demand for African innovations will continue to increase, and with that, so will the need for the protection of creators.  

In a new report, investment adviser and former World Bank portfolio manager Eric Guichard argues that African countries are in need of stronger intellectual property rights and copyright frameworks, and offers easily implemented policy recommendations for the public and private sector to meet this need. The current fragmented intellectual property rights (IPR) framework undercuts IPR valuation, monetization, and protections against piracy. In addition, it severely limits opportunities for wealth creation, job creation, and the development of local capital markets. Though several regional regulatory initiatives have been launched to support the development of IPR rights, such as the Africa Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO), African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI), and the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Protocol, they lack the ability to enforce rights across countries and protect the work of African creatives.  

Eric Guichard is founder and CEO of Homestrings.com, a global diaspora investment and research firm. Prior to Homestrings, he founded GRAVITAS Capital, LLC, a sovereign wealth advisory firm with over US$2 billion in mandates. Before that, Guichard was on staff at the World Bank. Guichard is a graduate of Cheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar, Senegal (ENSUT), a graduate of Duquesne University, and a World Bank Scholar and Harvard Fellowship awardee at Harvard Business School.

The Africa Center works to promote dynamic geopolitical partnerships with African states and to redirect US and European policy priorities toward strengthening security and bolstering economic growth and prosperity on the continent.

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Image: Crew members prepare for film production in Sudan. January 29, 2011. Reuters/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah.