From June 26 to 28, 2025, Brazzaville in the Republic of Congo hosted the 5th edition of REF, a major event that brought together more than 2800 participants around the promotion of investment in infrastructure and innovation within the Francophone space.
The opening ceremony was held at the conference center of the Grand Hotel in Kintele, in the presence of the President of the Republic of Congo, H.E. Denis Sassou N'Guesso, as well as numerous political, economic and institutional figures.
The African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI) was represented by its Director General, Denis Bohoussou, who participated in panel number 5, held at the Hilton Hotel and entitled: “Securing, Harmonizing, and Training Towards a More Fluid and Competitive Francophone Economic Space.” This provided the Director General with an opportunity to present the Organization's strategic vision regarding the competitiveness of registration fees for industrial property titles, aimed at encouraging entrepreneurs and startups to protect their innovations.
Alongside Slim Khalbous, Rector of the Agence Universitaire Francophone (AUF), and Thomas Denfer, President of the Alliance Francophone des Registres du Commerce (AFRC), he stated: “There can be no knowledge economy without rigorous and accessible protection of innovation. OAPI is committed to making this protection not only effective, but above all affordable for entrepreneurs in our shared space.” OAPI’s participation in this event demonstrates its commitment to supporting innovation and entrepreneurship within the Francophone community.
