2023-09-14 10:57:18
In Tunisia, as in all North African countries, optimizing the fight against counterfeiting requires a comprehensive approach involving government, businesses, regulatory bodies and civil society.
In partnership with the National Institute of Industrial Property (Inpi France) and the National Institute of Standardization and Industrial Property (Innorpi Tunisia), the “Intellectual Property Rights and Innovation in Africa” (AfrIPI) project, a intellectual property (IP) development project, funded by the European Union and implemented by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (Euipo), is organizing from September 12 to 14, 2023, in Tunis, a international seminar on the “fight against counterfeiting and defense of intellectual property”.
The event aims to raise awareness among authorities, rights holders and stakeholders involved in the application of IPR (Intellectual Property Rights) of the importance of IP, the need to fight against counterfeiting as well as the the impact of this scourge on the national economy and ecology, with the aim of promoting a memorandum of understanding between the different customs directorates of North African countries, notably Algeria, Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia, with the support of France, through the facilitation of the establishment of informal networks between the participating authorities.
It is also an opportunity to allow rights holders, authorities and international institutions to examine solutions to the problem of ecological destruction of seized counterfeit goods and to set up a product recycling project. counterfeited goods in the North African region.
Strengthen the role of the private sector
At the opening of the work of this seminar, Nafaâ Boutiti, general director of Innorpi, did not fail to recall that it is important to fight against counterfeiting to protect economies, public health and the environment and that governments, businesses and consumers all play a role in this fight by strengthening legislation, putting in place quality control mechanisms and raising awareness of these issues.
“This seminar essentially aims to debate the issue of the fight against counterfeiting, during which the legal aspects (industrial property, acquisition and application of rights, etc.) will be addressed. It was also an opportunity to strengthen collaboration between the public and private sectors, as well as the various stakeholders in this area, whether at the national, regional or even international level,” he said.
In this same context, Boutiti added that regional cooperation is essential to succeed in this major challenge, given the impact of this scourge on the economy, the environment, health, etc.
“In Tunisia, we have the adequate legal arsenal with laws relating to the protection of different aspects of industrial property which have been put in place since 2000-2001. But this is not enough today. To do this, we are in the process of revising the existing legislation in this area. This measure will allow us to adapt to the evolution of international standards and to offer a more effective protection system, through the use of new information technologies,” he further underlined.
A program of 17 million d’euros
For his part, the Ambassador of the European Union to Tunisia, Marcus Cornaro, indicated that counterfeiting spares no country both regionally and internationally. This scourge continues to affect several strategic sectors such as pharmaceuticals, textiles, automobile spare parts, etc., but we are also seeing more and more counterfeiting in the digital field and in the arts. “Faced with this situation, the European Union has been strongly committed, for years, to this fight to have stricter regulations. So, this meeting allows us to strengthen this collaboration with Tunisia with the aim of consolidating our efforts and our support at the continental level to have a global vision on an African scale… To do this, a five-year regional program and with a total cost of 17 million euros was put in place to fight against this scourge”, he underlined, while insisting on the importance of having more commitment between the different stakeholders, led by the private sector, which is directly affected by this phenomenon.
What impacts?
Counterfeit products represent an imminent threat to the development of North Africa, as well as other regions of the world. There is, first of all, the economic impact where we can cite several problems, particularly the loss of income (counterfeiting deprives legal businesses of income, which can lead to a reduction in investments, economic growth and job creation), unfair competition (counterfeit products are often sold at much lower prices than original products, creating unfair competition for local businesses) and reduced investor confidence ( counterfeiting may deter foreign investors from injecting capital into the region, as it may be seen as a sign of economic and legal instability).
There is also the deterioration of product quality, as counterfeit products are generally of lower quality, which can harm consumer satisfaction and the reputation of local businesses. There is also a loss of tax revenue, as counterfeiters often evade taxes and customs duties, depriving governments of significant tax revenue that could be invested in development projects. Not only that, today we are also seeing an impact on innovation. Indeed, local companies are discouraged from investing in research and development of new products when counterfeiting is widespread, because they risk having their innovations quickly copied. This without forgetting the destabilization of markets, since the presence of counterfeit products can disrupt markets, leading to price fluctuations and economic uncertainty.
Regarding the threat to public health, counterfeit products, especially in the pharmaceutical and food sectors, can pose serious risks to public health due to the presence of harmful substances, ineffectiveness of counterfeit medicines .
As for the environment, it is worth remembering that some counterfeits may use poor quality materials or unregulated manufacturing practices, which can have an impact on the environment by contributing to pollution and degradation of natural resources.
The need for cooperation regional
Generally speaking, for North Africa, which seeks to stimulate its economic development, counterfeiting can constitute a major obstacle. It is therefore essential to put in place measures to strengthen the protection of intellectual property, intensify the fight against counterfeiting and raise awareness among businesses and consumers of the risks associated with these counterfeit products. In this same framework, regional and international cooperation is also crucial to combat counterfeiting, as criminal networks often operate on a global scale.
As for the Tunisian economy, the exact costs of counterfeiting are difficult to quantify precisely due to the clandestine nature of this activity and the lack of reliable data. However, these costs vary depending on economic sectors, the extent of counterfeiting and other factors. To obtain a precise assessment of the economic impact of counterfeiting in Tunisia, it would be necessary to conduct specific economic studies and analyze the available data to better understand these impacts and implement more effective anti-counterfeiting strategies. .
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