The Anti-Counterfeit Authority participated in this year’s legal awareness week that was organized by the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) from 25^th to 29^th of October 2021 at the Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi.  

During the opening ceremony, the Chairperson of the LSK Nairobi branch, Mr. Erick Theuri said the objective of the legal awareness week was to “promote the mandate of the Law Society of Kenya by extending legal literacy and awareness to members of the public”. It also involves organizations that are involved in provision of legal work to show-case their services by explaining their mandates.

Members of the public visit the ACA Exhibition booth at Milimani Law Courts Yard where ACA officers sensitized them on the role in ACA in combating counterfeits.   

The annual event draws participants from the criminal justice system comprising of investigators, prosecutors and judicial officers. This together with members of public presents an ideal forum for the Anti-Counterfeit authority to enlighten them on the provisions of the Anti-Counterfeit Act 2008 and the protection of intellectual property rights as well as the offenses and penalties as prescribed in the Anti-Counterfeit Act.   

Speaking at the start of the event, Senior Awareness Officer at the Anti-Counterfeit Authority, Ms. Annie Obiero said; “We are here to raise awareness on the problem of counterfeit products that pose great risks to public health and safety. Trade in counterfeit goods lead to the loss of competitiveness by intellectual property owners, loss of government revenue, stifles creativity and innovation and leads to loss of trade and investment competitiveness”. 

These public outreach efforts are part of Multi Agency Anti-Illicit Trade Outreach (MAAITO) programs spearheaded by government agencies and are contained in the National Action Plan Against Counterfeiting and Illicit trade.  The plan that was launched in 2019 calls for a coordinated approach by government agencies tasked with combating illicit trade to partner with the private sector and other Non-State Actors like the Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) to address the demand side of counterfeiting and change consumer attitudes through public education.