La protection des obtentions végétales dans les états menbres de l'organisation africaine de la propriété intellectuelle(OAPI)

The aim of the paper on the protection of plant varieties in the Member States of the African Organization for the Protection of Intellectual Property (OAPI) is to give an overview of the extension of uniform IPR-protection under the OAPI-Agreement to plant varieties by the introduction of a new Annexe X at the 1999-Agreement conference of the OAPI. The revision had become necessary in order to comply with the WTO-Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPs), which requires Members to protect plant varieties either by patents, by a sui generis right or by a combination of both. OAPI-Members have opted for the sui generis~approach as enshrined in the Convention establishing a Union for the Protection of Plant Varieties (UPOV), and which is administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). For purposes of presenting the new uniform law the article follows the classic structure of intellectual property systems by setting forth, in a first part, the substantive prerequisites for the grant of the exclusive right (novelty, distinctiveness, homogeneity, stability and ? as a specific requirement ? designation by a generic name), before detailing the granting procedure, including opposition procedure and the determination of the entitlement to protection (including employee rights). A second main part of the article is devoted to the substantive rules of protection, namely the privileges of the owner of the right, the exceptions to the exclusivity, and the limits set by public policy, including the various types of compulsory licensing. This second part also covers the term of protection, the invalidation of the certificate of protection, and matters of enforcement. In the conclusion, plant variety protection is put into its legal and economic context with particular attention being given to the role it may play for the economic development, if sufficiently supported by the international community as regards technical and administrative matters.