ISIPPE-3: Advancing Coordinated Responses to Counterfeiting and Illicit Trade

For intellectual property practitioners, the challenge in anti-counterfeiting increasingly lies not only in establishing infringement, but in translating rights into effective action across complex supply chains and multiple jurisdictions. Investigations may involve parallel regulatory concerns, fragmented evidence, digital and physical distribution channels, and commercial networks whose proceeds extend beyond the goods seized.

ISIPPE-3: A platform for enforcement cooperation

The Anti-Counterfeit Authority (ACA), in collaboration with the Ministry of Investments, Trade and Industry, will host the Third International Symposium on Intellectual Property Protection and Enforcement (ISIPPE-3) on 18–19 November 2026 at PrideInn Flamingo Beach Resort & Spa in Mombasa, Kenya. The theme is “Stepping Up the Fight Against Counterfeiting to Safeguard Public Health and Safety.” The hybrid symposium is intended to bring together public and private-sector stakeholders to exchange experiences and consider practical responses to emerging enforcement challenges. For further information, consult the official event page https://events.aca.go.ke.

The programme’s focus reflects the increasingly interconnected nature of enforcement. Discussions will cover legal and regulatory frameworks, supply-chain authentication and traceability, investigations and enforcement, financial investigations and asset tracing, and the role of technology and innovation. Priority sectors include agricultural inputs, automotive spare parts, pharmaceuticals and medical devices, alcohol and tobacco, and electrical and electronic products where counterfeiting can raise concerns extending beyond brand infringement to product safety, regulatory compliance and market integrity.

For practitioners advising rights holders, these issues raise familiar but evolving questions such as how to secure and preserve usable evidence across jurisdictions; how to coordinate with regulators, customs and law-enforcement agencies; how to identify the actors and distribution channels behind suspected counterfeit goods; and how to pursue the financial benefit derived from illicit trade. Technology-assisted authentication and traceability may support these efforts, but their value depends on reliable implementation and effective cooperation between stakeholders.

Relevance for IP practitioners

ISIPPE-3 offers a forum to compare enforcement approaches, discuss practical obstacles and strengthen working relationships between rights holders, practitioners and enforcement agencies. Its value for the IP community will lie in connecting legal remedies with operational realities including intelligence-sharing, evidential requirements, coordinated action and measures capable of disrupting the commercial networks that sustain counterfeit trade.