Contact Information
http://www.oapi.wipo.net/fr/OAPI/index.htm
OAPI (Organisation Africaine de la Propriete Intellectuelle) is the office that receives and processes patent applications for French-speaking Africa. The member countries are Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Ivory Coast, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, and Togo. An OAPI application automatically designates all member states. It is possible to obtain a patent that is in force in these countries only by an application to OAPI, which is a member of the Paris Convention and of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (so PCT applications may enter regional phase in OAPI within 30 months from the priority date). Applications may be filed in English or French.
The cost of filing an OAPI patent application may include surcharges on length of the specification, claims, and drawings in excess of 10 pages, and for claims in excess of 10. It is possible to file a preliminary amendment to reduce the number of claims so as to reduce such claim surcharges. Annuity fees are payable on pending applications annually from the first anniversary of the filing date (which is deemed to be the international filing date for PCT applications).
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