OAPI and ARIPO are the two regional routes for trademark registration in Africa, and they work in opposite ways. An OAPI filing gives one unitary right in 17 mainly French-speaking states. An ARIPO filing under the Banjul Protocol is a bundle of designations, and each national office still decides for its own territory. Since 1 March 2026 those offices have six months to decide, and ARIPO charges new fees in US dollars. This guide is for European and Latin American brand owners planning OAPI ARIPO trademark registration as part of an African rollout.
Key takeaways
- OAPI gives one title for all 17 member states: you cannot pick countries, and the right stands or falls as a whole.
- ARIPO’s Banjul Protocol covers 13 states. You choose which ones, and each national office has six months from ARIPO’s notification to accept or refuse (nine months before 1 March 2026).
- OAPI can be designated through the Madrid System, in force since 5 March 2015. ARIPO cannot, although 11 of the 13 Banjul states can be designated one by one.
- Nigeria, South Africa, Angola and Ethiopia are in neither system nor in Madrid, so they need national applications.
How does OAPI trademark registration work?
The African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI) was set up by the Bangui Agreement. Its single office in Yaoundé, Cameroon, runs a centralised procedure for Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal and Togo. There is no separate national trademark route in those countries: OAPI is the office for all of them.
According to the Adams & Adams OAPI guide, one application covers every member state with no designation, and you can claim several Nice classes in it. Opposition must be filed within three months of publication for applications filed from 1 January 2022, and that deadline cannot be extended. Registration lasts ten years from the filing date and is renewable for further ten-year periods, with a six-month grace period for late renewal.
The unitary model is simple, but it has a cost: an invalidity action or a successful opposition hits all 17 states at once.
How does the ARIPO Banjul Protocol work?
The African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) handles trademarks under the Banjul Protocol. ARIPO lists its contracting states as Botswana, Cabo Verde, Eswatini, The Gambia, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, São Tomé and Príncipe, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe. Not every country in the region is on that list: Kenya and Ghana, for instance, are not.
You file one application, choose the states you want and pay per designated state and class. ARIPO then notifies each national office, which examines the mark under its own law and may refuse it for its territory. The result is a set of national rights that are managed through one file. ARIPO states that a registration lasts ten years from the application date and can be renewed for further ten-year periods.
One national quirk is worth checking early. Adams & Adams notes that Malawi does not recognise service marks, so an ARIPO registration for services may not be enforceable there.
What changed in the 2026 Banjul Protocol?
The EU IP Helpdesk reported on 1 March 2026 that the 2026 edition of the Protocol and its regulations took effect that day. The practical changes are:
- Designated states now have six months, down from nine, to send acceptance, conditional acceptance or refusal (Spoor & Fisher, 3 March 2026).
- Opposition stays at three months from publication, with no extension available.
- The registration fee must be paid within three months of notification, or the application lapses. B.W. Kahari’s summary of 8 January 2026 says this replaces a 12-month window.
- Priority can be claimed from display at a recognised exhibition within six months.
- Electronic filing is recognised for all applications, and English is confirmed as the language of ARIPO proceedings.
- New fees in US dollars: USD 160 for an electronic application (USD 200 on paper), USD 50 per designated state for the first class and USD 20 for each additional class, plus a USD 100 opposition transmittal fee and a USD 500 appeal fee. Registration and renewal fees are also charged per class and per designated state.
OAPI vs ARIPO trademark registration at a glance
| Feature | OAPI | ARIPO (Banjul Protocol) |
|---|---|---|
| Territory | 17 member states, all covered | 13 contracting states, chosen by you |
| Nature of the right | One unitary title | Bundle of national rights from one file |
| Who examines | OAPI itself | Each designated national office, within six months |
| Opposition | Three months from publication (applications filed from 2022) | Three months from publication, not extendable |
| Term | Ten years from filing, renewable | Ten years from application, renewable |
| Link to Madrid | OAPI can be designated (since 5 March 2015) | ARIPO cannot be designated; 11 Banjul states can, one by one |
| Main risk | All-or-nothing: one attack affects all states | Uneven national examination and enforcement |
Which route fits your African rollout?
The map usually decides it. For French-speaking West and Central Africa, OAPI is the only route, either directly or through a Madrid designation. For southern and eastern Africa, compare an ARIPO filing with individual Madrid designations. According to WIPO Lex, Tanzania and Uganda are not in Madrid, so for them ARIPO or a national filing are the options. Kenya and Ghana are in Madrid but not on the Banjul list. Nigeria, South Africa, Angola and Ethiopia need national filings through local agents.
If you already hold an international registration, adding OAPI by subsequent designation is often the simplest step. Remember that it stays dependent on your base mark for five years.
What this means for your business
- List the African markets in your three-year plan, not just the first launch country.
- Sort them into OAPI, Banjul, Madrid-only and national-only groups.
- Run searches in the key states before filing. A regional application does not resolve conflicts with earlier marks.
- Diarise the six-month national response period and the three-month registration fee deadline under the new Banjul rules.
- Check that the base mark and goods description work for every route you choose.
If you want one plan for Africa, Europe and Latin America, our team for international trademark registration across the EU, Latin America and Africa can set out the routes and costs side by side.
Where companies get African trademark filings wrong
- Treating ARIPO as a unitary title. A designation can be refused nationally, and enforcement still happens country by country.
- Missing the new Banjul payment window. Under the 2026 rules, failing to pay the registration fee within three months means the application lapses.
- Assuming OAPI can be split. You cannot keep the mark alive in some OAPI states and drop others.
- Letting a distributor file first. A mark registered by a local partner can block your own filing and is costly to recover.
- Forgetting the gaps. Nigeria, South Africa, Angola and Ethiopia fall outside both systems and Madrid.
These problems usually come from handling each region separately. With one team holding the calendar for every route, deadlines and base marks stay aligned.
Frequently asked questions
Can I designate ARIPO through the Madrid Protocol?
No. ARIPO is not a Madrid contracting party, so a Madrid international registration cannot designate it. However, 11 of the 13 Banjul Protocol states are Madrid members in their own right and can be designated individually. Tanzania and Uganda are not, so for those two the choice is an ARIPO filing or a national application.
Does an OAPI registration cover all 17 member states?
Yes. An OAPI application covers every member state automatically, with no designation of countries. The right is unitary, so it is granted, renewed and, if attacked successfully, cancelled for all 17 states together. OAPI can also be designated through the Madrid System, which has been in force for OAPI since 5 March 2015.
How long do national offices have to examine an ARIPO designation?
Under the 2026 edition of the Banjul Protocol, in force since 1 March 2026, each designated office has six months from ARIPO’s notification to communicate acceptance, conditional acceptance or refusal. Before that date the period was nine months. Diarise the date for each state: it drives launch timing and the time you will have to prepare any response to a national refusal.
Can IP Global Guard handle OAPI and ARIPO filings for my brand?
Yes. We prepare the filing strategy and coordinate qualified local correspondents before OAPI, ARIPO and the national offices. Where Madrid is the better route, we prepare the international application through your office of origin, acting directly where our professionals are entitled and through qualified representatives otherwise, with one point of contact.
How IP Global Guard can help you cover Africa
Choosing between OAPI, ARIPO, Madrid and national filings is a budget decision as much as a legal one. IP Global Guard, the intellectual property line of META Channel Corporation Limited, manages trademarks in more than 25 jurisdictions across Europe, Latin America and Africa with one strategy and one billing relationship.
Tell us which African markets are in your plan, which marks and classes matter and when you expect to launch. We will map each country to the right route, flag the gaps and coordinate every filing from a single point of contact. Send us your list of African markets.
This article is general information, not legal advice, and reflects the position on its publication date.
Sources
- EU IP Helpdesk, ARIPO launches 2026 edition of the Banjul Protocol on trade marks (1 March 2026)
- Spoor & Fisher, summary of the Banjul Protocol 2026 amendments (3 March 2026)
- B.W. Kahari via Mondaq, ARIPO amendments to the Banjul Protocol effective 1 March 2026 (8 January 2026)
- ARIPO, Trademarks (official page)
- OAPI, official website
- WIPO Lex, Madrid Protocol contracting parties (database)
- Adams & Adams, IP Africa: OAPI
- Adams & Adams, IP Africa: ARIPO
