World Intellectual Property (IP) Day and Africa’s Reality Check

Apr 28, 2025

On the 26th of April, the world paused to celebrate World Intellectual Property (IP) Day — a moment set aside to recognize the value of ideas, innovation, and creativity. In countries across the globe, leaders, creators, and policymakers spoke passionately about protecting the rights of those whose work fuels industries and cultures alike.

From music and film to fashion, software, and literature, intellectual property is the invisible foundation upon which creative economies are built. At its best, it ensures that a filmmaker can earn from her movie, a designer from his collection, a musician from their album. IP allows ideas to have ownership — a critical necessity in a world where creativity has become one of the most valuable currencies.

But in Africa, even as World IP Day hashtags trended and slogans were shared, the reality on the ground once again told a different story — a story of erosion, exploitation, and survival.

Because even while the world celebrated, African creators like Juliet Ibrahim were fighting — not for applause, but simply for the right to not have their work stolen in broad daylight.

What Exactly Is Intellectual Property — and Why Does It Matter?

At its simplest, intellectual property refers to creations of the mind. These include inventions, literary and artistic works, designs, symbols, names, and images used in commerce. It’s the difference between your original work and a copycat.

There are different types of IP rights:

Copyrights protect literary and artistic works — like films, books, songs, photographs, and even software code.
Patents protect new inventions and innovations, ensuring inventors can control how their ideas are used commercially.
Trademarks protect brand identities — the logos, slogans, or marks that distinguish products and services.
Industrial designs protect the unique visual aspects of products — how they look and feel.
Geographical indications protect products that are tied to a specific place of origin, like Champagne or Ethiopian coffee.

IP is powerful because it allows creators to control, profit from, and be credited for their work. It turns intangible ideas into economic assets. In mature economies, the IP industry alone generates trillions of dollars annually, fueling millions of jobs across entertainment, tech, fashion, publishing, and more.

But the beauty of IP isn't just in the money. It's in the fairness — the idea that the people who dream, build, and create should be able to own what they make.

Without strong IP protection, creativity withers. Innovation slows. Economies suffer.

And without IP protection, African creators are left exposed.

Juliet Ibrahim’s Lament

Just days before World IP Day, Juliet Ibrahim, a renowned Ghanaian actress and independent film producer, took to social media with a disturbing revelation. Despite painstakingly producing and legally uploading her films onto her official YouTube channel, Juliet found that several Ghanaian TV stations had pirated, rebroadcast, and exploited her films without permission.

Among the culprits was a Ghanaian station called Pemsan TV, which blatantly aired her copyrighted works despite multiple cease-and-desist letters and direct communications from her legal team. Ibrahim’s management tried everything — formal notices, private negotiations, public warnings. Still, the piracy continued.

And Juliet was not alone. Nigerian actresses like Bimbo Ademoye and Omoni Oboli were also speaking up, exposing how their films had been illegally ripped from YouTube and broadcast across Ghanaian media platforms.

In Juliet's words, it was a betrayal — not just of her, but of the very ideals Africa claims to champion.

"This isn’t just happening to me. I stand in full support of my Nigerian colleagues... This is not just a Nigerian issue; it is an African issue," she said.

For Juliet — and for many — this wasn't just a violation of copyright. It was a violation of dignity.

It was a reminder that even as Africa talks about building a billion-dollar creative economy, its own systems often fail the very people making it possible.

Africa’s $4.2 Billion Creative Economy — Built on Shaky Foundations

According to UNESCO, Africa’s creative industries are worth over $4.2 billion and employ millions across sectors like film, music, fashion, and media. Nollywood alone produces about 2,500 films annually, making Nigeria’s film industry one of the largest in the world by volume.

Yet despite all this growth, enforcement of IP rights remains alarmingly weak.

A 2023 report from the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) noted that up to 80% of African creators have experienced piracy or IP theft.
In Nigeria, the Nigerian Copyright Commission estimates that the local film industry loses over $2 billion annually to piracy.
Ghana’s IP Office admitted in 2024 that "piracy remains rampant," especially among media houses.

Why does this happen?

Because IP laws on the books mean nothing if they aren't enforced on the streets.

Governments across Africa have passed laws — some even modeled after international best practices. But enforcement agencies are often underfunded, overburdened, or simply indifferent. Creators are left to defend themselves, spending personal money to chase after thieves operating openly and shamelessly.

For creators like Juliet Ibrahim, it’s a devastating cycle: invest time, money, creativity into making something beautiful — only to watch it stolen and profited from by those who didn’t lift a finger to build it.

The Deeper Pain: When IP Theft Kills Innovation

At first glance, piracy might seem like just a nuisance — a few unauthorized broadcasts, a few lost sales. But the damage cuts much deeper:

Financial devastation: Creators lose income they desperately need to fund new projects.
Emotional exhaustion: The constant fight against theft drains energy and passion.
Career stagnation: Without protection, it’s harder for African creators to attract investors, international deals, or sustainable growth.
Public cynicism: When audiences see pirated work everywhere, they begin to undervalue original content altogether.

IP theft doesn’t just hurt individual creators. It stifles entire industries.

Imagine if tomorrow, every Nollywood director, every Afrobeats musician, every African fashion designer simply stopped creating because they knew their work would be stolen. What would remain?

A hollowed-out creative economy that looks vibrant on paper but is dead inside.

Music: Africa’s Living Proof That IP Matters

Interestingly, music provides one of the clearest examples of how strong IP rights can supercharge an industry.

Across Africa, the rise of digital distribution platforms, streaming royalties, and publishing deals have helped musicians start to reclaim ownership of their art. Thanks to copyright protections (even if still imperfectly enforced), Afrobeats stars like Burna Boy, Tems, and Rema are now commanding global stages and earning global dollars.

The music sector is living proof that when IP rights are respected, creativity flourishes.

This year’s World IP Day 2025 theme emphasized how IP fuels connections across industries — from music to film to fashion to tech.

When a musician’s track appears in a blockbuster movie or on a fashion runway, it’s not random. It’s IP in action — licensing deals, rights agreements, royalties.

IP isn’t just about ownership. It’s about building creative ecosystems where one industry strengthens another, creating opportunities and innovation at scale.

But to build those ecosystems in Africa, IP cannot remain a theoretical concept. It must become enforced reality.

So What Needs to Change? (And Fast.)

Juliet Ibrahim’s call for help wasn’t just about her personal grievances. She called on Ghana’s:

National Communications Authority (NCA)
Copyright Office
Police Service
Film Authority
Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture
Media Commission

To step up and protect creators.

But the solution must go beyond bureaucratic promises.

Here’s what must happen urgently if Africa’s creative economy hopes to survive:

Real enforcement, not just laws: Creators need fast, affordable legal recourse when IP is violated.
Stronger penalties for piracy: Fines and sanctions must be severe enough to deter media houses from stealing content.
Education for broadcasters: Many TV and radio stations genuinely don't understand IP law. They must be trained — and held accountable.
Regional collaboration: Since piracy often crosses borders, African nations must create joint frameworks to protect creators across the continent.
Public campaigns: Audiences must be educated to understand that consuming pirated content kills the industries they love.

Protecting IP Isn’t a Luxury — It’s Survival

In Africa, creators have always had to be warriors first, artists second. They dream while fighting to survive.

But how much longer can we ask them to keep building industries that don't protect them?

World IP Day must be more than a moment of speeches. It must become a turning point — where Africa looks itself in the mirror and finally asks: what does it mean to value creativity?

Because valuing creativity is not about slogans. It’s about action. It’s about protecting those who create, against those who would steal.

It’s about finally understanding that without real IP protection, Africa’s creative future will be stillborn — not because talent is lacking, but because protection is.

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