By Marius Schneider, ECTA International Trade Committee, IPvocate Africa, Ebene, MauritiusIn a recent decision, the Court of Appeal of Tanzania has held African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) trade marks designating Tanzania to be unenforceable, because Tanzania has not domesticated the Banjul Protocol on Marks. As a reaction to this decision, it is now no longer possible to designate Tanzania in an ARIPO trade mark application. Tanzania is reassuring the IP community that they are pursuing all legal and administrative avenues to expedite the domestication of the Banjul Protocol.Background on the Ruling of the Court of Appeal of Tanzania The Court of Appeal of Tanzania has held, in a judgement delivered on 26 September 2025 in Lakairo Industries Group Co Limited and others v/ Kenafrica Industries Limited and others (Civil appeal no. 593 of 2022), that ARIPO trade marks designating Tanzania are not enforceable, because the country has not domesticated the Banjul Protocol.Kenafrica Industries Limited had initiated a trade mark infringement action against their former distributor Lakairo Industries Group Co Limited, because the latter has after the termination of the distribution agreement started to use several brands of Kenafrica Industries Limited. Kenafrica Industries Limited was successful on the basis of infringement of its trade marks in the first instance but lost in the appeal proceedings.The Court of Appeal of Tanzania held that the ARIPO trade marks of Kenafrica Industries Limited designating Tanzania were unenforceable in Tanzania, because the country did not transpose the Banjul Protocol into national law.The judgement can be criticised for leaving several grey areas (including uncertainty over trade marks on which the infringement action was based) and for not exploring the notion of bad faith agent trade marks (Article 6septies of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property).The Court of Appeal of Tanzania is the highest level in the justice delivery system in Tanzania, and therefore no further appeal is possible.Tanzania is a dualist country: to be valid international treaties must be transformed into national law In International Public Law, a difference is made between monist countries, in which international treaties are directly applicable in the domestic legal system and may even take precedence over conflicting domestic laws, and dualist countries, in which treaties need to be incorporated into local law to be applicable.Tanzania, as many Commonwealth African states, follows the dualist approach, meaning that international law is not automatically part of its domestic legal system and requires separate legislative action to be implemented. Treaties must be transformed into national law, typically through an act of parliament, before they can be applied by domestic courts.The ARIPO Banjul Protocol has not been transformed into national law in Tanzania and as a result the Court of Appeal of Tanzania has held ARIPO trade marks designating Tanzania to be unenforceable.ARIPO informs the users that it is no longer possible to designate Tanzania On 23 October 2025 ARIPO informed the IP community that, further to a decision of the Tanzanian IP Office, it is until further notice no longer possible to designate Tanzania in an ARIPO trade mark application.ARIPO has reassured users that Tanzania is pursuing all legal, administrative, and diplomatic avenues to expedite the domestication of the Banjul Protocol on Marks.Trade mark owners should contemplate the filing of a national trade mark in Tanzania Owners of ARIPO trade marks designating Tanzania with active business interests in the country should contemplate the filing of a national trade mark in Tanzania to exclude any risk for the trade marks to be held unenforceable. It is likely to take some time before Tanzania has domesticated the Banjul Protocol and it is not certain that this domestication is retroactive.About ARIPO The African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) is one of the two regional IPR organisations in Africa. As of May 2025, there were 22 member states. However, only member states that are contracting parties to the relevant Protocols can be designated through ARIPO applications. For example, although Somalia and Sudan are members of ARIPO, they are not contracting parties to the Banjul Protocol on Marks, which establishes a common trade mark application filing system and therefore cannot be designated. Only 11 states may currently be designated through an ARIPO trade mark: Botswana, Cape Verde, Eswatini, The Gambia, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Sao Tome and Principe, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. According to a communiqué of ARIPO dated 23 October 2025, Tanzania is until further notice not eligible for designation as a reaction to the decision of the Court of Appeal of Tanzania.