Country Overview
Djibouti (population approximately 1.17 million, 2024) is a geostrategic gateway positioned at the intersection of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. Its economy is overwhelmingly service-oriented, with transport, logistics, and port activities contributing between 76% and 85% of GDP. As the primary maritime hub for landlocked Ethiopia and a key transshipment node for regional trade, Djibouti’s intellectual property landscape is defined less by domestic manufacturing and more by its critical role in the global supply chain. The Djibouti Franc (DJF) is pegged to the US Dollar, providing a stable financial environment for the maintenance of long-term IP portfolios.
Located in the Horn of Africa, Djibouti leverages its political stability and advanced infrastructure—including the Doraleh Container Terminal and the Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway—to serve as a logistics platform for East Africa. The government’s “Vision 2035” strategy focuses on transforming the nation into a regional commercial and logistics hub. Consequently, IP protection is increasingly vital for foreign investors operating within its free trade zones and for multinational brands securing their rights in this transit corridor.
Djibouti IP System Overview
Djibouti operates an independent national IP system and is not a member of regional organizations such as OAPI (Organisation Africaine de la Propriété Intellectuelle) or ARIPO (African Regional Intellectual Property Organization). Therefore, protection must be sought directly through the national office.
Djibouti is a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and party to key WIPO treaties, including the Paris Convention, the Berne Convention, and the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).
National IP Authority: Office Djiboutien de la Propriété Industrielle et Commerciale (ODPIC).
- Trademarks
- Patents
- Industrial Designs
- Copyright
This section provides a high-level overview of jurisdiction-specific IP protection requirements and is not intended to be comprehensive. For advice on your specific matter, please contact our IP experts.
- Filing System:
Multi-class applications are permitted under the Nice Classification (11th edition), although applications are generally filed on a per-class basis. - Term of Protection:
Trademarks are protected for ten years from the application date and may be renewed indefinitely for successive ten-year periods. A six-month grace period is available for late renewal upon payment of the prescribed surcharge. - Madrid Protocol:
Djibouti is not a member of the Madrid System. Trademark protection must therefore be obtained through national filing. - Priority Claim:
Paris Convention priority is recognized. An application may claim priority within six months of the earliest foreign filing, provided the priority is properly declared. - Opposition:
There is no formal opposition procedure in Djibouti. Trademark applications are published after registration, and third parties may challenge registrations only through court cancellation actions, including on grounds of bad faith. - Registration Timeline:
Trademark registration is typically completed within approximately six months in straightforward cases, as applications are examined primarily for formal compliance. - Key Filing Formalities:
A simply signed power of attorney is required at filing, with no notarization or legalization required for trademark applications. Where priority is claimed, a certified copy of the priority application must be submitted together with a French translation.
- International Filing:
Djibouti is a contracting state of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) since September 23, 2016. PCT international applications may therefore enter the national phase in Djibouti. - Term of Protection:
Patents are protected for a period of twenty years from the filing date, subject to the payment of prescribed maintenance fees. - Priority Claim:
Paris Convention priority is recognized. An application may claim priority within twelve months from the earliest foreign filing date. - Filing Formalities:
Patent applications must be filed in French. Where an application is initially filed in English, a French translation of the specification is required. A power of attorney is mandatory, simply signed for direct national applications, while PCT national phase entries typically require a notarized and legalized power of attorney. If the applicant is not the inventor, a duly executed assignment from the inventor, together with a French translation, must be submitted. - Examination:
Patent applications undergo substantive examination to assess novelty, inventive step, and industrial applicability. Upon grant, the patent confers exclusive rights to make, use, and sell the invention in Djibouti. - Maintenance Fees:
Annual maintenance fees (annuities) are payable on each anniversary of the filing date. Annuities are often payable in advance in five-year blocks. A six-month grace period is available for late payment upon payment of the applicable surcharge.
- Term of Protection:
Industrial designs are protected for an initial term of five years from the filing date. Protection may be renewed twice for additional five-year periods, resulting in a maximum total protection term of fifteen years. - Hague Agreement:
Djibouti is not a member of the Hague System for international design registration. Design protection must therefore be obtained through national filing. - Filing and Examination:
Design applications are filed with the Office Djiboutien de la Propriété Industrielle et Commerciale (ODPIC) and must include drawings or images of the design along with a brief description. Examination is limited to formal requirements only, with no substantive examination of novelty. The law does not provide for opposition proceedings; designs are registered and subsequently published. - Renewal:
To maintain protection, renewals must be filed at the end of the fifth and tenth years. A six-month grace period is available for late renewal upon payment of the prescribed surcharge. No extension beyond fifteen years is permitted. - Priority Claim:
Paris Convention priority is recognized. A design application filed in Djibouti may claim priority within six months of an earlier foreign design filing.
- International Membership:
Djibouti has been a member of the Berne Convention since 2002, providing automatic protection for original literary and artistic works without any formality. Djibouti has not yet ratified the WIPO Copyright Treaty. - Registration:
No formal copyright registration system is required or provided in Djibouti. Copyright protection arises automatically upon creation of a qualifying work, in accordance with Berne Convention principles. Authors may optionally notarize or otherwise record their works for evidentiary purposes, but such steps are not mandatory. - Term of Protection:
The general term of copyright protection is the life of the author plus fifty years after death. For anonymous or pseudonymous works, and works made for hire where applicable, protection lasts for fifty years from the date of publication. Certain categories, such as photographic works and works of applied art, are protected for twenty-five years from the date of creation. - Scope of Rights:
Copyright law in Djibouti grants authors exclusive economic rights, including the rights to reproduce, adapt, distribute, publicly perform, and broadcast their works, subject to statutory limitations and exceptions such as fair use. Moral rights, including the right of attribution and the right to object to derogatory modifications, are also recognized and generally continue even after the expiration of economic rights. - Enforcement:
Copyright owners may enforce their rights through civil and criminal proceedings against infringers. Djiboutian courts may grant remedies including damages, injunctions, and seizure of infringing copies. As a Berne Convention member, Djibouti extends protection to foreign works under the principle of national treatment, and Djiboutian works enjoy reciprocal protection abroad.
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