Kenya is preparing a new law that would formally link products such as coffee, tea, rice, honey, soapstone and traditional crafts to their places of origin, granting legal protection to geographic names and restricting their use in local and export markets.
- •Members of the National Assembly’s trade committee were briefed on 16 April on the proposed Geographical Indications Bill, 2026, that would establish a dedicated legal system for registering and enforcing origin-based product names.
- •Officials from the Ministry of Trade told lawmakers that the bill aims to ensure that only goods genuinely produced in defined regions, and meeting agreed standards, can be marketed under those regional identities.
- •The bill is currently undergoing public participation at ministry level as part of the legislative process, with officials arguing that countries with similar systems have strengthened their rural economies, improved product branding, and increased global recognition of their exports.
During the briefing, officials and technical experts highlighted a wide range of products that could qualify for protection including tea and coffee from major growing zones, Taita baskets, Embu macadamia, Kisii soapstone, Mwea rice, honey from Baringo and Kitui, Wamunyu handicrafts, and fish leather from Kisumu.
At the core of the bill is a legal framework for geographical indications; names or labels that connect a product’s identity and reputation to a specific location. The system would apply across agriculture, food, natural resources, handicrafts and industrial goods, extending the idea of place-based branding beyond export staples into broader segments of Kenya’s production economy.
The Cabinet Secretary responsible for industrial property would set policy direction, coordinate implementation and align Kenya’s system with international obligations, including global trade rules.
County governments would take on a practical role of organizing producers into cooperatives, helping define geographic boundaries, supporting applications for registration and ensuring environmental safeguards are observed in production areas.
The Day-to-Day administration would fall to a Registrar housed within the Kenya Industrial Property Institute (KIPI). The Registrar would examine applications, manage objections, maintain a national register of protected names, issue certificates, and handle disputes over registration, cancellation and correction. The office would also support enforcement by participating as an expert witness in legal proceedings.
The bill treats geographical indications differently from private intellectual property rights. Once registered, they cannot be sold, transferred, pledged or used as collateral. Instead, they are collectively managed by producer groups or public bodies, with use limited to producers operating within the defined area and following the required production standards. Administrators may also authorize others in the value chain to use the designation, while the Registrar can intervene to include qualified producers who might otherwise be excluded.
To secure protection, the applicants must define precise geographic boundaries, describe product characteristics tied to that location, set out production methods, and establish quality control systems. Applications must also include rules for managing the indication and receive backing from county governments.
The use of a protected name is broadly defined, covering sales, advertising, imports and exports, domain names and commercial documents. It also extends to labeling rules once a product is registered, requiring goods produced under a geographical indication to follow specified identification standards.
The bill further restricts registration where names are deceptive, generic, offensive, contrary to public interest or confusing with existing trademarks. It also sets out criminal penalties for false claims, including fines of up to five million shillings, prison terms of at least two years, or both.
Registered geographical indications must be reviewed every ten years, with fees required for renewal and proof that the original conditions that justified registration still exist. Failure to comply could lead to cancellation, though restoration would be possible.
