On February 20, 2026, Dr. Maurice Bolo, Director of the Scinnovent Centre, paid a courtesy call on Prof. Shaukat Abdulrazak, Principal Secretary, State Department for Science, Research and Innovation, Nairobi, and briefed him on a study he conducted on Kenya’s intellectual property (IP) landscape titled “Patents and Beyond: Industrial Property Acquisition in Kenya – Facts, Figures and Trends (1990–2020).”

The study, an update of work published 10 years earlier, highlighted changing trends in IP ownership; locality/geographical distribution (local vs. foreign IPs); economic sectors where IPs are applied and registered and their alignment with national development priorities and strategies; gender and social inclusion; partnerships and collaborations; linkages and networks; the role of devolution in IP and knowledge; as well as the contributions of universities, TVETs, other learning institutions, public research institutes, and the private sector. It also examined issues related to policies, governance, and institutions.

These insights were noted as highly relevant to the mandate of the State Department for Science, Research and Innovation and its key agencies, including the National Commission for Science, Technology and Innovation (NACOSTI), Kenya National Innovation Agenc (KeNIA), National Research Fund, the African Academy of Sciences, the International Science Council, and UNESCO.

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