How proposed Anti-counterfeit law will affect you

The proposed anti-counterfeit goods and services law seeks to impose tougher rules to control the sale, manufacture and importation of counterfeit goods and services.

The private member’s Bill drafted by Mr Asuman Basalirwa, the Bugiri Municipality Member of Parliament, proposes to, among others, introduce a 10-year jail term for anyone, who violates the major objectives of the Bill.

The Anti-Counterfeit Goods and Services Bill, 2023, also imposes a Shs50m penalty on those defying the directives of its enforcers.

Mr Basalirwa, who launched public consultations on the Bill at Parliament yesterday, told journalists that although there are scattered pockets of anti-counterfeit legislation, the country lacks robust legislation to control the growing problem, which has negatively impacted the national economy for decades.

“I want to confirm that Uganda has no single piece of legislation that comprehensively addresses the issues of counterfeit. What we have are pockets of one or two lines [tackling counterfeits] in different pieces of legislation,” Mr Basalirwa said.

“Therefore, we want to make a piece of legislation that comprehensively addresses the issue of counterfeit goods and services,” he added.

The draft law does not only prohibit the sale and manufacture of counterfeit goods but also seeks to punish anyone who packages, labels or imports such goods.

 Section 12(1) of the Bill describes an offender of the Bill as anyone who directly or indirectly gets involved in the selling, importing or possession of any counterfeit goods or services.

“Any person who aids, abets and conspires in commission of any offence under this Section [12(1)] commits an offence and is liable, on conviction to imprisonment for a period not exceeding ten years, or a fine not exceeding five times the value of the prevailing retail price of the genuine good or services,” the Bill reads in part.

Other penalties include cancellation of the trade licence, destruction or confiscation of all the equipment used in the production of counterfeit goods as well as disqualifying the convicted person from practicing or engaging in any commercial activity for any period not exceeding ten years.

The Bill also stipulates that in determining the penalty for the offender, the court shall take into account any risk to human or animal life and other dangers that may arise from the use of the counterfeit goods.

The Bill further stipulates that any person, who obstructs the implementing body from carrying out its function commits an offence will be liable, on conviction, to a fine not exceeding two thousand five hundred currency points [Shs50m) or to imprisonment not exceeding three years or both.

The same penalties apply to any person who breaks or tampers with a seal applied by the implementing body.

The proposed law, when passed, is to be jointly enforced by various government ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs). They include the Uganda Investment Authority (UIA), Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), and Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS).

Mr Jonathan Ebwaru, the Soroti West MP, who seconded the Bill, said he and Mr Basalirwa would in the next three weeks traverse the country to consult on the Bill before presenting it to Parliament.

“We are going to move and have consultations in all the regions starting with Mukono [District] on April 15. This will help us to capture the contributions of Ugandans because we are all vulnerable to the issue of counterfeit,” Mr Ebwaru said.

“Other East African countries have already passed this into a law. We, therefore, think that this Bill will receive overwhelming support from the public and government,” he added.

Mr Fred Muwema, a director at Anti-Counterfeit Network in Africa, welcomed the proposed law against counterfeits, saying it is long overdue.

“It is a big milestone that we now have a ‘law’ that is going to deal directly with counterfeits. Absence of the law had made it harder to combat the vice, but now this law will create a firm foundation for us to push back these counterfeits,” Mr Muwema said.

The penalties