Dr Tang’s visit comes at a time when Uganda is accelerating reforms in intellectual property (IP) management, strengthening support systems for creators, and pushing to convert science, technology, and creativity into economic value.
Kampala, Uganda: The arrival of World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Director General H.E. Daren Tang for a three-day mission from December 3–5, 2025 marks one of the most strategic moments for Uganda’s rapidly expanding innovation ecosystem.
The visit comes at a time when Uganda is accelerating reforms in intellectual property (IP) management, strengthening support systems for creators, and pushing to convert science, technology, and creativity into economic value. For a country positioning innovation as a growth engine under Vision 2040 and the National Development Plan IV, the presence of the world’s top IP diplomat is both symbolic and catalytic.
The Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB), which serves as the national IP office, is leading engagements that will include school innovation showcases, a review of the IP in Schools Program, and high-level dialogues between WIPO and government leadership.
Registrar General Ms Mercy K. Kainobwisho says the mission arrives at a turning point in Uganda’s innovation agenda.
“This visit demonstrates that Uganda is no longer on the periphery of the global IP conversation. We are building a modern, future-ready ecosystem that supports innovators, researchers, and young creators. WIPO’s presence affirms that momentum,” she said.
Dr Tang’s visit will place Uganda’s innovation sector on the global map in several strategic ways:
1. Strengthening Uganda’s IP Protection Framework: WIPO’s engagement is expected to accelerate legal and institutional reforms already underway. With more innovators emerging from universities, startups, research labs, and secondary schools, demand for stronger patent, trademark, copyright, and industrial design protection is rising sharply.
Uganda currently registers more trademarks than copyrights and patents combined—a gap WIPO support aims to narrow by helping innovators protect scientific and technological outputs.
2. Deepening International Partnerships for Funding and Capacity Building:- The presence of the Director General opens doors for Uganda to attract new technical assistance, innovation financing, IP training programs, and technology-transfer partnerships.
For a youthful country where over 75% of the population is under 30, these partnerships are essential in transforming creativity into enterprise.
3. Spotlighting Uganda’s Fast-Rising School and Youth Innovation Movement:- URSB will showcase the IP in Schools Program, which is being hailed as one of East Africa’s most promising youth-innovation pipelines. Students have designed prototypes in robotics, agritech, renewable energy, and digital security—innovations that WIPO will directly assess.
The program aims to build a generation that understands IP rights early, helping future innovators avoid exploitation and commercialize their ideas with confidence.
4. Boosting National Efforts to Build an Innovation-Driven Economy:- WIPO’s visit aligns with government push to expand science, technology, and innovation hubs through agencies such as the Presidential Initiative on Science and Technology (PIST), UICT, and the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation.
The DG’s meetings with top government officials, including the Ministers of Justice, Foreign Affairs, Science and Technology, the Speaker of Parliament, and President Museveni himself, signal high-level political commitment to making IP a central economic pillar.
Ms Kainobwisho says the visit cements Uganda’s place as a rising force in Africa’s innovation landscape.
“Uganda’s innovation ecosystem is stronger, more vibrant, and more future-focused than ever before. The WIPO DG’s mission is an endorsement of the progress Uganda is making and a chance to unlock even greater opportunities,” she added.
WIPO’s high-level delegation includes senior officials from the Africa Bureau and global development partnerships divisions, supported locally by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and URSB’s IP directorates.
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