UNAB push for Marrakesh Treaty to enable visually impaired Ugandans access published works

Kampala, Uganda: The Uganda National Association of the Blind (UNAB) is advocating for the full domestication and implementation of the Marrakesh Treaty to enable people who are blind, have low vision, or live with print disabilities to access published works freely in accessible formats.

Despite Uganda ratifying the Marrakesh Treaty on April 23, 2018, implementation remains inadequate, leaving over 1.2 million visually impaired and print-disabled Ugandans locked out of critical knowledge and educational materials. Globally, only 7% of published works are available in accessible formats such as braille, large print, audio, or digital alternatives, a gap that continues to fuel what experts describe as a “Book Famine”.

While speaking to DailyExpress at UNAB headquarters on Monday, April 14, 2025, Mr. Paul Bamubingirire, the Project Coordinator for the Domestication of the Marrakesh Treaty, called on government agencies and lawmakers to align national copyright laws with the treaty’s provisions.

“Countries are required to introduce a standard set of limitations and exceptions to copyright rules to permit the reproduction, distribution, and availability of works in formats that serve people who are blind, have low vision, or have print disabilities,” said Bamubingirire.

He emphasized that the treaty also allows for cross-border exchange of accessible materials between organizations serving beneficiaries, a provision Uganda has yet to fully utilize.

The campaign, themed “Together we can alleviate book famine through copyright law reform”, is being supported by the Disability Rights Fund of Denmark and is aimed at removing legal and structural barriers to access.

According to a guide authored by the East Africa Centre for Disability Law and Policy, Uganda signed the Marrakesh Treaty on June 28, 2013, and ratified it five years later. However, without full legal domestication and policy alignment, millions of blind and print-disabled Ugandans continue to be denied access to vital information.

The Marrakesh Treaty, adopted globally in Morocco on June 27, 2013, and enforced from September 30, 2016, now binds at least 88 countries as of April 2022. Administrative duties are handled by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), which coordinates global efforts to ensure inclusive access to published content.

UNAB is now calling on Parliament, the Uganda Law Reform Commission, and the Ministry of Justice to accelerate amendments to copyright legislation and enforce the treaty’s provisions for the benefit of the blind and visually impaired community.