Provides advice on IPR protection, including information on the registration of patents and trademarks.

Guyana joined the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and acceded to the Berne and Paris Conventions in late 1994.  Guyana has not ratified a bilateral intellectual property rights agreement with the United States. 

Registering a patent or trademark can take six months or longer, but even with a completed registration, no effective enforcement mechanisms exist to protect intellectual property rights.  Patent and trademark infringement continues to be common.  Local television stations, at times including the state-owned and operated National Communication Network (NCN), pirate and rebroadcast TV satellite signals with impunity.  Most music, videos, and software for sale are pirated.  Book piracy is also widespread, especially foreign textbooks.   Some estimates show that illegally photocopied textbooks account for nearly one-third of local sales.  HBO has an ongoing issue with local firms allegedly infringing its intellectual property rights.

Additionally, it was reported by the former head of the leading e-governance authority in Guyana that more than one-third of the computers used in government offices have utilized pirated software.  The government has signaled its intention to ensure all software utilized by its computers is compliant and respects intellectual property rights, and has already taken steps to correct this.

Guyana's laws have not been amended to fully conform to the requirements of the Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement.  In 2001, the Ministry of Foreign Trade and International Cooperation and Ministry of Legal Affairs drafted TRIPS legislation, but the draft has not moved forward.

In any foreign market, companies should consider several general principles for effective protection of their intellectual property. For background, please link to our article on Protecting Intellectual Property and Stopfakes.gov for more resources.
Resources for Rights Holders
Raymond Slanina
Political and Economic Officer
Embassy of the United States of America
100 Duke and Young Streets
Kingston
Georgetown, Guyana
Phone: + (592) 225-4900-9 Ext. 4220 and Ext. 4213
Fax: + (592) 225-8597
Email: commercegeorgetown@state.gov
http://georgetown.usembassy.gov


Wynette Oudkerk
Economic and Commercial Specialist
Embassy of the United States of America
100 Duke and Young Streets
Kingston
Georgetown, Guyana
Phone: + (592) 225-4900-9 Ext. 4220 and Ext. 4213
Fax: + (592) 225-8597
Email: commercegeorgetown@state.gov
http://georgetown.usembassy.gov
 

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