The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Owing to the growing creative economy and the increasing value of intellectual property, the Center for Law, Policy, and Innovation Initiative (CeLPII), in partnership with the Africa Creatives Alliance (ACA), will host a high-level dialogue on intellectual property-backed lending on March 19 at Motiv, Bugolobi.
According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the creative economy refers to the ‘knowledge-based’ economic activities upon which the creative industries are based.
It often comprises the Cultural and Creative Industries (CCIs). Cultural and Creative Industries, in turn, features multiple subsectors, including fashion, creative technology; film, literature and publishing; music and performing arts; and the visual arts and crafts.
Globally, CCIs are multi-trillion-dollar sectors and constitute a growing source of employment and exports. Despite this potential, the growth of these sectors is hampered by a lack of financial support.
A promising solution is to allow creatives to use the intellectual property (IP) in their works as collateral to obtain funding from financial institutions. This is supported by Uganda’s Security in Movable Property Act (2019), which recognises intangible assets such as IP — as eligible forms of security.
However, financial institutions remain hesitant to extend credit on this basis. Their concerns stem from limited familiarity with IP valuation methodologies; difficulty in integrating intangible assets into existing credit risk assessment models; uncertainties around revenue streams associated with creative works, especially digital content; unfamiliarity with how to dispose of these assets in the event of default; and the lack of standardized documentation and registration practices, particularly for copyrights.
As a result, officials say, creatives are usually unable to use IP to obtain loans in Uganda. Addressing this gap requires a concerted, cross-sector dialogue that clarifies the legal framework, demystifies valuation approaches, builds institutional capacity, and identifies actions needed to operationalise IP-backed lending.
The roundtable aims to increase awareness of IP valuation models relevant to Uganda’s creative economy, while identifying policy, legal, and institutional barriers to IP-backed financing. It will also develop priority action points to inform updates to the national IP policy and sector-level guidelines, strengthen collaboration across government, financial instit
“We are excited to collaborate with CeLPII and other stakeholders to ensure creatives have the financial pathways needed for growth and somewhat recognise their work. We see every day that creatives are building work with real value, but too often that value is still disconnected from the financial systems meant to support growth. This roundtable creates an important space to explore how intellectual property can be better understood, better protected, and better positioned within conversations about financing the creative economy”, said Amanda Gowa, Community and Program Development Lead, Africa Creatives Alliance.
This discussion is expected to culminate in the establishing of a Working Group comprised of movers and shakers in the creative industry in Uganda, as well as representatives from financial institutions, who will continue the dialogue from this talk and come up with practical workable recommendations which can then be implemented into a pilot project focused on using IP as collateral for creatives.
Reach A Hand Uganda (RAHU) – a youth-centred NGO – will look to emphasise the importance of intellectual property for young people pursuing careers in the creative ecosystem.
This participation aligns with RAHU’s Program Area on Youth Empowerment, Livelihoods, and Innovations (YLI), which spearheads economic justice through capacity-building programs such as the Ikon Awards Young Filmmakers’ Fellowship and underscores the need for practical mechanisms that allow young innovators to leverage their IP for financing.
