RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONIP/C/W/338/Add.1
4 March 2002
(02-1089)
Council for Trade-Related Aspects
of Intellectual Property RightsOriginal:  French
REVIEW OF LEGISLATION
Replies from Gabon to Questions Posed by Canada, the European Communities
and their Member States, the United States and Switzerland
Addendum
By means of a communication from the Permanent Mission of Gabon, dated 1 March 2002,
the Secretariat has received the following replies to questions posed by Canada, the European
Communities and their Member States, the United States and Switzerland, as circulated in
documents IP/C/W/314, 320, 316 and 315, respectively.
_______________
CANADA
1. Please describe how the enforcement obligations (Articles 41-61 of the TRIPS
Agreement) have been implemented.
Gabon has ratified the Bangui Agreement, as revised on 24 February 1999 to incorporate the
obligations under Articles 41 to 61 of the TRIPS Agreement.
The revised Bangui Agreement came into force on 1 March 2002.
A number of domestic measures have also been taken or initiated, including:
- The establishment of a National Committee to monitor the TRIPS Agreement;
- the creation of an Administrative Unit for the Control and Repression of
Counterfeiting;
- the reopening of the National Agency for Artistic and Cultural Promotion (ANPAC),
which is in charge of managing literary and artistic works;
- the ongoing review of Law No. 1/87 of 29 July 1987 Instituting Protection for
Copyright and Neighbouring Rights, with a vi ew to bringing it into line with the
TRIPS Agreement;
- the framing of a draft intellectual property law in order to facilitate intellectual
property enforcement procedures.IP/C/W/338/Add.1
Page 2
2. What protection does your copyright legislation afford to "foreign works"?
The Gabonese Copyright Law stipulates that works by foreign nationals published on the
territory of Gabon shall enjoy the same protection as that afforded to works by Gabonese nationals.
Subject to application of the international conventions to which the Gabonese Republic is a party,works not comprised in either of the above-mentioned categories shall not enjoy the protection
afforded by this Law unless the country of which the original owner of copyright is a national, or in
which he is domiciled, affords equivalent protection to works by Gabonese nationals.
However, neither the integrity nor the authorship of those works shall be affected (Article 77
of Law No. 1/87 of 29 July 1987).
EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES AND THEIR MEMBER STATES
A. 
GENERAL PROVISIONS
1. Please describe if your legislation includes measures necessary to protect public health
and nutrition, and to promote the public interest in sectors of vital importance to your
socio-economic and technological development as mentioned under Article 8 of the TRIPS
Agreement.  If so, please explain how such measures are consistent with the provisions of the
TRIPS Agreement.
The revised Bangui Agreement provides that each member State may grant ex officio licences
in certain areas and subject to certain conditions (Annex I, Article 56;  Annex IX, Article 32;  and
Annex X, Article 36).  At the domestic level, specific steps are being taken, in conformity with
Article 8 of the TRIPS Agreement.
B. COPYRIGHT AND RELATED RIGHTS
2. Please state how your legislation provides for the protection of the exclusive rights of
authors in relation to their literary and artistic  works, as specified in Article 9 of the TRIPS
Agreement, which requires Members to comply with Articles 1-21 of the Berne Convention and
the Appendix to the B erne Convention (1971).
This question is being dealt with as part of the ongoing review of Law No. 1/87 of
29 July 1987 Instituting Protection for Copyright and Neighbouring Rights.
3. Please describe the protection accorded to authors of computer programs, databases or
compilations of data.
Article 9 of Annex VII (Economic Rights) to the revised Bangui Agreement stipulates that an
author shall enjoy the exclusive right to exploit his work in any form whatsoever and to obtain
monetary advantage therefrom.  Subject to the provisions of Articles 10 to 21, the author of a work
shall enjoy, in particular, the exclusive right to perform or authorize the following acts:
- Reproduce his work;
- translate his work;- adapt, arrange or otherwise transform his work;IP/C/W/338/Add.1
Page 3
- distribute copies of his work to the public by means of sale or any other transfer of
ownership or by rental (rental rights shall not apply to the rental of computer
programs in those cases where the program itself is not the essential subject matter of
the rental);
- perform his work in public;
- communicate his work (including performance) to the public by broadcasting (or
retransmission) or by television;
- communicate his work (including performance or broadcasting) to the public by cable
or by any other means.
4. Please state whether your legislation provides for a rental right and, if so, the works to
which it applies.
Article 9(1)(iv) of Annex VII to the revised Bangui Agreement provides for the rental of
works, with the exception of computer programs in cases where the program itself is not the essential
subject-matter of the rental.  A similar provision is made in Article 48(1)(v) of Annex VII.
5. Please describe the rights granted to performers, producers of phonograms (sound
recordings) and broadcasting organizations under your legislation.
Gabonese law provides that performers, phonog ram producers and broadcasting organizations
shall enjoy authorization rights (revised Bangui Agreement, Annex VII, Articles 48, 49 and 50;  and
Law No. 1/87 of 29 July 1987, Articles 78 to 84).
6. Please state whether your legislation provides  for any limitation or exception in relation
to each of the rights described above in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Berne
and Rome Conventions and in light of Articles 13 and 14.6 of the TRIPS Agreement.
The revised Bangui Agreement deals with these matters in Articles 11 to 21 of Annex VII on
Limitations on Economic Rights.
7. Please state the terms of protection of each right described above and the work or
subject matter to which it applies.
General economic rights in a work are protected during the lifetime of the author and for
seventy years after his death.  Moral rights are without limit in time (Bangui Agreement, Annex VII,Articles 22 to 27).
8. Please state how your legislation grants the retroactive protection provided pursuant to
Article 18 of the Berne Convention (the obligatio n of which derives from Article 9 of the TRIPS
Agreement) and Article 14.6 of the TRIPS Agreement.
[No reply received]
9. Please explain whether the droit de suite provided for in Article 14 ter of the Berne
Convention is protected in your legislation.
[No reply received]IP/C/W/338/Add.1
Page 4
C. TRADEMARKS
10. Please give the definition of a sign under your national legislation and explain under
what conditions it is protectable.
Article 2 of Annex III to the Bangui Agreement stipulates that "[a]ny visible sign used or
intended to be used and capable of distinguishing the goods or services of any enterprise shall be
considered a trademark or service mark, including in particular surnames by themselves or in a
distinctive form, special, arbitrary or fanciful designations, the characteristic form of a product or its
packaging, labels, wrappers, emblems, prints, stamps, seals, vignettes, borders, combinations or
arrangements of colors, drawings, reliefs, letters, numbers, devices and pseudonyms.
The trademarks or service marks shall be considered collective marks where the conditions
for their use are laid down in rules approved by the competent authority and where they may be usedonly by enterprises of public character, unions or groups of unions, associations, groups of producers,
manufacturers, craftsmen or tradesmen, provided that the latter are officially recognized and have
legal personality".
It is further stipulated that "[a] mark may not be validly registered if:
- It is devoid of distinctiveness, notably owing to the fact that it consists of signs or
matter constituting the necessary or genetic designation of the product or the
composition thereof;
- it is identical to a mark that belongs to another owner and is already registered, or the
filing or priority date of which is earlier, and which relates to the same or similar
goods or services, or where it so resembles such a mark that it is liable to mislead or
confuse;
- it is contrary to public policy, morality or the law;- it is liable to mislead the public or business circles, notably as to the geographical
origin, nature or characteristics of the goods or services in question;
- it reproduces, imitates or incorporates armorial bearings, flags or other emblems, the
abbreviated name or acronym or an official sign or hallmark indicating control and
warranty of a State or intergovernmental organization established by an internationalconvention, except where the competent authority of that State or of that organization
has given its permission".
11. Please confirm whether or not services are a protectable subject matter in your
trademark law.  Please confirm if signs, such as trade names, are protectable.  Please describe ifelements such as sound, perfumes and containers are protectable.
Gabonese legislation affords protection for service marks, trade names and elements of three-
dimensional shape (bottles, containers). 
There is no provision for the protection of sound and olfactory marks, however.  This will be
dealt with in the context of the draft law on intellectual property that is currently being drawn up.
12. Please explain what the requirements of use are, if any, as a condition for a trademark
registration.  Please explain the definition of use and the conditions of maintenance of aregistration in that respect.IP/C/W/338/Add.1
Page 5
Under Gabonese legislation, trademark rights are acquired solely through registration, not
use.
13. Please confirm whether or not your legislation permits that the registration of
trademarks be indefinitely renewable.
Gabonese legislation provides that a trademark may be renewed indefinitely for successive
periods of ten years.
14. Please describe the special requirements, if any, prescribed by your legislation
concerning the use of a trademark.
Any registered mark that has not been used for an uninterrupted period of five years following
its registration may be cancelled at the request of any interested party (Annex III, Article 23).
D. GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
15. Please explain whether or not your trademark registration authority refuses a
trademark application if it contains a geographical indication.
According to Article 2 of Annex VI to the Bangui Agreement, the trademark registration
authority may refuse or invalidate the registration of a trademark containing a geographical indicationor constituted by such an indication, if the use of said indication in the trademark is liable to mislead
the public as to the true place of origin of the products concerned.
Likewise, registration of a geographical indication which, although literally exact with respect
to the territory, region or locality from which the products originate, shall also be refused orinvalidated if it suggests to the public that the products originate from a different territory.
16. Please give the definition of a geographical indication in your legislation.
"Geographical indication" means an indication that  serves to identify a product as originating
from a territory, a region, or a locality within that territory, in those cases where the quality, reputation
or other specific characteristic of the product may be essentially attributed to such geographicalorigin.
17. Please describe and explain the provisions of your legislation establishing a link, if any,
between the characteristics of an indication and its geographical origin.
Subject to certain provisions, only producers carrying on their activity for commercial
purposes in the geographical area specified in the register are entitled to use a registered geographical
indication with respect to the products specified in the register, provided that such products possess
the essential characteristic qualities specified in the register.
18. Please describe how additional protection is granted by your legislation to wines and
spirits.  Please mention other types of products, if any, covered by this additional protection.
Gabonese legislation contains no specific provision concerning wines and spirits.
Wines and spirits are protected in accordance with the general provisions governing
geographical indications.IP/C/W/338/Add.1
Page 6
This question can be dealt with in the context of the draft law on intellectual property
currently being drawn up.
19. Please explain how exceptions under Article 24 of the TRIPS Agreement are used in
your jurisdiction.  Please provide examples of the use of the exceptions by courts or lists of
names considered as generic in your jurisdiction.
The Bangui Agreement contains no specific provisions concerning the exceptions under
Article 24 of the TRIPS Agreement.
E. INDUSTRIAL DESIGNS
20. Please explain whether or not your legislat ion extends to the protection of designs
dictated essentially by technical or functional considerations.  Please explain how textile designs
are protected.
Technical or functional aspects are not mandatory conditions for the protection of industrial
designs in the Gabonese Republic.
Only ornamental and aesthetic features are considered in the protection of industrial designs.
Motifs of printed fabrics are not covered by specific provisions and are protected under Annex IV of
the Bangui Agreement.
21. Please explain how your legislation protects right holders of a design against importing
of articles bearing embodied or copied design.
Registration confers on the creator of an industrial design or his successors in title the
exclusive right to exploit the design in question, and hence to prohibit the manufacture, sale or importof any item which infringes that right.
22. Please state whether or not your legislation provides for the right to issue a compulsory
licence for industrial designs.
Gabonese law does not provide for the issuing of compulsory licences for industrial designs.
23. Please indicate for what period of time your legislation grants protection for industrial
designs.
Industrial designs are registered for a period of five years following the filing date of the
application for registration.  However, registration may be renewed for a further two consecutiveperiods of five years on payment of a renewal fee, the amount of which is fixed by regulation.
F. 
PATENTS
24. Please describe how your legislation defines the notions of: novelty, inventiveness and
industrial application.
Novelty
(a)  An invention shall be new if it has not been anticipated by prior art;IP/C/W/338/Add.1
Page 7
(b)  prior art shall consist of everything made available to the public, in any place and by
any means or method, before the filing date either of the patent application or of a
patent application filed abroad the priority of which has been validly claimed;
(c)  the novelty of an invention shall not be denied if, during the 12 months preceding the
date specified in the above paragraph, the invention has been the subject of a
disclosure resulting from:
- an obvious violation committed against the applicant or his predecessor in
title;
- the fact that the applicant or his predecessor in title has displayed it at an
official or officially recognized international exhibition.
Inventiveness
An invention shall be regarded as resulting from an inventive step if, having regard to the
prior art, it would not have been obvious to a person having ordinary knowledge and skill in the art on
the filing date of the patent application or, if priority has been claimed, on the priority date validly
claimed for it.
Industrial application
An invention shall be considered industrially applicable if it can be made or used in any kind
of industry.  The term "industry" shall be understood in its broadest sense;  in particular it shall cover
handicraft, agriculture, fishery and services.
25. Please explain whether or not in your legislat ion, patent or otherwise, patent rights are
enjoyed without any exclusions.  If exclusions a re provided for, please describe in detail how
these exclusions are applied in legal as well as practical terms.
Pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Bangui Agreement, the rights deriving from a patent
shall not extend:
(a) To acts in relation to subject matter brought onto the market on the territory of a
member State by the owner of the patent or with his consent;
(b) to the use of objects on board foreign aircraft, land vehicles or ships that temporarily
or accidentally enter the airspace, territory or waters of a member State;
(c) to acts in relation to a patented invention that are carried out for experimental
purposes in the course of scientific and technical research.
26. Please explain whether your legislation prov ides for the exclusion of inventions from
patentability based on ordre public or morality.  If so, please explain the relevant section of
your legislation and explain its formulation.  Please also explain if it has been applied in
practice.
Article 6(a) of Annex I to the Bangui Agreemen t stipulates that inventions the exploitation of
which is contrary to public policy or morality shall not be patentable.
There are no practical cases to report so far, as no application has been rejected on these
grounds.IP/C/W/338/Add.1
Page 8
27. Please explain whether or not diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical methods are excluded
from patentability in your legislation. If so, please explain the relevant section of your legislation
and explain its formulation.
Pursuant to Article 6(e) of Annex I to the Bang ui Agreement, patents shall not be granted for
methods for the treatment of the human or animal body by surgery or therapy, including diagnostic
methods.
28. Please explain whether or not plants, animals and essentially biological processes are
excluded from patentability in your legislation. If so, please explain the relevant section of your
legislation and explain its formulation.
Article 6(c) of Annex I to the Bangui Agreement provides that patents shall not be granted for
inventions having as their subject matter plant varieties, animal species and essentially biological
processes for the breeding of plants or animals, other than microbiological processes and the products
of such processes.
29. Please describe how micro-organisms, non-essentially biological processes,
microbiological processes and plant varieties are protected in your legislation. Please explain, inthis respect, the relevant sections of your legislation.
Micro-organisms, non-essentially biological pr ocesses and microbiological processes and the
products from such processes are protected by patents, in accordance with Annex I to the Bangui
Agreement.
Plant varieties are protected by a provisi on of Annex X on Plant Variety Protection.
30. Please explain how your legislation protects  patent right holders against the importing
and against the offering for sale of a patented invention.
Subject to the conditions and within the limits specified in Annex I to the Bangui Agreement,
a patent confers on its owner the exclusive right to exploit the patented invention and to prohibit any
other person from doing so.
31. Please state if your legislation provides for patent product protection of pharmaceutical
and agricultural chemical products.  In the a ffirmative, please indicate the legal reference.
[No reply received]
32. Please clarify if the patent protection of a process, as provided for in your legislation,
covers the product obtained directly by that process.
[No reply received]
33. Please explain the additional conditions, if any, in your legislation other than the
sufficient disclosure of the invention in Articl e 29 of the TRIPS Agreement (e.g. submission of
justification for access to genetic material or prio r inform consent to its use).  If such additional
conditions exist, please point out the relevant le gislation and describe the additional conditions
in detail.
[No reply received]IP/C/W/338/Add.1
Page 9
34. Please describe if your legislation provides for limited exceptions to the exclusive rights
conferred by a patent.  If so, please make a reference to relevant legislation.
[No reply received]
35. Please explain whether or not your legislatio n provides for compulsory licensing. If so,
please explain in detail the conditions under which a compulsory licence may be granted.  In
particular, please explain how your national le gislation considers individual merits in the
authorization of such use.
[No reply received]
36. Please explain how your legislation explicitly ensures that a proposed user has made
efforts to obtain authorization from the righ t holder on reasonable commercial terms and
conditions and that such efforts have not been successful within a reasonable period of time.  In
this context, how do you define "reasonable period of time"?  Please also explain how your
legislation ensures that the use of a compulsory  licence shall be author ized predominantly for
the supply to the domestic market of the Member authorizing such use.
[No reply received]
37. Please state if your legislation grants addi tional protection for innovations after the 20
years of patent protection has lapsed.
[No reply received]
38. Please explain how your legislation provides for the reversal of the burden of proof in
relation to process patents.
[No reply received]
G. LAYOUT -DESIGNS (TOPOGRAPHIES ) OF INTEGRATED CIRCUITS
H. PROTECTION OF UNDISCLOSED INFORMATION
I. ENFORCEMENT
[No replies received]
UNITED STATES
K. CRIMINAL  PROCEDURES
32. Article 61 also indicates that Members may provide for criminal procedures and
penalties in cases of wilful infringement of oth er forms of intellectual property.  Please describe
any provisions of the laws of Gabon that provide for such procedures and remedies, citing to the
relevant provisions of law or regulation.
Penalties in the event of aggravating circumstances are laid down in the revised Bangui
Agreement, in particular in Article 59 of Annex I, Article 40 of Annex III and Article 26 of Annex IV.IP/C/W/338/Add.1
Page 10
L. STATISTICAL QUESTIONS
33. Please provide statistical information related  to civil copyright, trademark, geographical
indication, industrial design, patent, integr ated circuit layout-design, and trade secret
enforcement for 2000, including the number of cases filed; injuncti ons issued; infringing
products seized; infringing equipment seized; cases resolved (including settlement); and theamount of damages awarded.
The relevant case law is currently being compiled and will be communicated to the
Secretariat in due course.
34. Please provide statistical information relat ed to criminal enforcement in the area of
copyright piracy and trademark infringeme nt for 2000, including the number of raids,
prosecutions, convictions, and the amount of fines and/or jail terms (including whether the fines
were paid and whether the jail term was actually served or was suspended) and any other
information establishing that the criminal syst em operates effectively to deter copyright piracy
and trademark counterfeiting.
The relevant case law is currently being compiled and will be communicated to the
Secretariat in due course.
SWITZERLAND
A. 
PATENTS
1. Does your legislation grant patent protection for inventions relating to products and
processes in all fields of technology?  Are there any exceptions?  If so, please explain what these
exceptions are and how they comply with Article 27 of the TRIPS Agreement.
Gabonese legislation provides for exceptions relating to certain categories of products.
Article 6 of Annex I to the Bangui Agreements stipulates that patents shall not be granted for the
following:
(a) Inventions the exploitation of which is contrary to public policy or morality;
(b) discoveries, scientific theories and mathematical methods;(c) inventions having as their subject matter plant varieties, animal species and
essentially biological processes for the breeding of plants or animals other than
microbiological processes and the products of such processes;
(d) schemes, rules or methods for doing business, performing purely mental acts or
playing games;
(e) methods for the treatment of the human or animal body by surgery or therapy,
including diagnostic methods;
(f) mere presentations of information;
(g) computer programs;(h) works of an exclusively ornamental nature;(i) literary, architectural and artistic works or any other aesthetic creation.
_______________