Geographical Indication (GI) options for Ethiopian Coffee and Ghanaian Cocoa

Chapter 4
Geographical Indication (GI) Options for Ethiopian
Coffee and Ghanaian Cocoa
Chidi Oguamanam and Teshager Dagne
Abstract
This chapter outlines research into the Ethiopian coffee and Ghanaian cocoa industries that
sought to determine the potential for the local communities and diverse stakeholders participating
in the two industries to benefit from sui generis geographical indications (GIs). The
research was premised on the notion that GIs have the potential to serve as instruments for
practical adaptation of intellectual property (IP) to open development. It was found that the
degree to which GIs could be successfully and sustainably used as tools of place-based intellectual
property (PBIP) – i.e. instruments of origin-designation – for Ethiopian coffee and
Ghanaian cocoa would likely depend on the economic implications of the establishment of GI
modalities. The implementation of GIs involves a range of tasks, including establishment of
legal and institutional structures; maintaining the “quality, reputation or characteristics” of
the products; enforcing and defending rights; and developing product awareness in international
markets (TRIPS, 1994). These tasks involve significant cost and effort that would need
to be measured and weighed against the expected benefits.
1. Introduction
Geographical indications (GIs), a form of place-based intellectual property
(PBIP) 1 protection, emphasise an agricultural product’s particular qualities linked
to an identified geographical area. Through the use of PBIP strategies, products
originating from a certain geographical location are differentiated from other
1 We recognise the complex and overlapping applications that exist, both within and outside
IP analysis, of the notions of place, origin and geographical delineation, and later in this
chapter we briefly interrogate the distinction between place and origin.