01 Dec 2025

 Botswana, through the Companies and Intellectual Property Authority (CIPA), continues to intensify efforts to position Intellectual Property (IP) at the centre of its economic transformation.

This was underscored by a high-level delegation visit from the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) to engage with young professionals and members of the Botswana Intellectual Property (IP) Careers Project.

The WIPO delegation, comprising WIPO’s head of employee experience, Mr Yamfwa Chinyanta and talent acquisition and development manager, Mr Naoto Sugiura, met with youth in Gaborone recently to explore career opportunities within the burgeoning IP sector.

The engagement session was part of a joint pilot initiative between WIPO and CIPA and it aimed to build awareness and strengthen local skills essential for the country’s emerging knowledge economy.

Speaking at the Careers in IP-Awareness Raising Event for Mid-Career Professionals, CIPA caretaker registrar general, Mr Godfrey Molefe, said Botswana had entered a pivotal moment in its national transformation, guided by the 2025 State-of-the-Nation Address, Botswana Economic Transformation Programme (BTEP) and the 12th National Development Plan (NDP 12).

Mr Molefe emphasised that central to such reforms was the creation of a digitally enabled, export-driven and innovation-led economy, with IP serving as the foundation for protecting creativity, technology and enterprise competitiveness.

He added that Botswana’s adoption of its first National Intellectual Property Policy (BIPP 2022) marked a crucial shift from mere awareness to active implementation.

“The policy sets out six pillars, including; IP governance, financing, education, entrepreneurship and institutional strengthening, backed by a National Vision that Botswana would be an IP-driven economy by 2036,” he said.

He highlighted that achieving Vision 2036 required significant investment in human capital.

Since joining WIPO in 1998, he said Botswana had benefited from extensive support in policy development, legislative reform, technical assistance and training, including scholarships for IP-focused Master’s Degree programmes.

Mr Molefe urged youth to consider IP as a career option, arguing that as start-ups and SMEs expanded, IP would be central to protecting their innovations and unlocking access to export markets. He expressed hope that the engagement would serve as a defining moment for some attendees.

On one hand, WIPO representatives confirmed that such initiatives were designed to make global IP systems more accessible to local professionals. They encouraged participants to explore career opportunities not only locally, but also within regional bodies such as the African Regional Intellectual Property Organisation (ARIPO) and the Southern African Development Community as well as international institutions, including WIPO itself.

 The one-day workshop highlighted a range of in-demand IP-related career paths, including patent and trademark examiners, IP lawyers, licensing and commercialisation officers, copyright and royalties administrators, enforcement specialists as well as creative-industry entrepreneurs. ENDS