On 24 December 2009 the Republic of Liberia became the latest African country to join the African Regional Intellectual Property Organisation (ARIPO). Both the Harare Protocol (applicable to patents, industrial designs and utility models) and the Banjul Protocol (applicable to trademarks) will come into force with respect to Liberia on 24 March 2010.

Liberia becomes the 17^th member state of ARIPO, the 16^th state party to the Harare Protocol and the 9^th state party to the Banjul Protocol.

The African countries currently party to the Harare Protocol are:

Botswana, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

The African countries currently party to the Banjul Protocol are:

Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe