The Study Examination and Validation Workshop carried out as part of supporting the process of recording geographic indications (IG) in Chad opened this Tuesday, May 13, 2025 in N'Djamena.
The meeting which is a joint organization of the OAPI and the intellectual property rights project in Africa (Afripi) with the support of the government of the Republic of Chad, was held in favor of producers of Chad Spirulina or Dihe in the local language and the National Committee of IG, in order to finalize the process of supporting the Dihe support for registration in protected geographic indication (IGP) at the OAPI.
The launch of the work is done on speeches by the assistant chief of the Afripi project Carlos Lleo Satorre and the representative of the Director General of OAPI, Michel Gonomy - Head of the Support Project for the establishment of geographic indications (PAMPIG) following which, an opening speech was delivered by the coordinator of the national binding structure of Chad, Chérif Abdalla.
A dynamic of development of IG En Marche
In order to deploy a strategy of effective recognition and exploitation under the IGP label, the exchanges between the different stakeholders aimed at:
• allow members of the Chadian association for the protection, promotion and development of the Dihe, to soak up the tools necessary for the process of recording their product in IGP;
• Restore to the committee in charge of IG in Chad, the results obtained at the end of the registration process; Which will be used to validate the specifications and the control plan for this pilot product in the region.
• Edify the said committee on the missions incumbent upon them with regard to the OAPI registration procedure, the management and sustainability of the IGP.
In its desire to support each Member State with IGP recognition of at least an emblematic product of its terroir, by this IG approach, the OAPI is held alongside the Chadian authorities to build a governance model integrating the valuation of the dihe as an asset of economic development.
