Nkate defends Brand Botswana logo

LEKOPANYE MOOKETSI
Correspondent | Wednesday October 13, 2010 00:00

 

Both logos feature the rays of the sun. Dismissing the innuendo, Nkate intimated that no one had exclusive use of the sun.

Speaking at the handing over ceremony of the Botswana Brand Trademark Certificate by the Registrar of Companies and Intellectual Property in Gaborone yesterday, Nkate said the fact of the matter was that 'the sun is the sun'.

'We don't know whether Mpumalanga is the only one who can use the sun,' he said. Addressing the same issue, BEDIA's Chief Commercial Officer (Intellectual Property), Timothy Moalusi, said trademarks were territorial and that each country protected its trademarks within its borders.

Moalusi said plagiarism could be an issue only if the Mpumalanga authority had registered the trademark in Botswana or if the Botswana trademark was to be registered in South Africa.

Meanwhile, Nkate recalled that BEDIA had launched the revised country brand logo, which has been nicknamed the 'Pride Mark' for short, in April.

Nkate said as custodians of the National Identity Programme, BEDIA was responsible for the management of the use of the 'Pride Mark.'

The key element of its mandate was to ensure a holistic approach to all legal and compliance issues related to the 'Pride Mark.' BEDIA is receiving many inquiries regarding the use of the brand by companies.

Nkate explained that organisations were not permitted to use the 'Pride Mark' to trade their goods and services on the market.

'Once a trademark is registered, the owner (BEDIA) holds certain exclusive rights to it,' he said. 'Should there be a desire to utilise the 'Pride Mark' for co-branding purposes, the public and organisations are required to apply (for the purpose) via BEDIA. We have a brand management process in place that will enable the assessment of such requests. We have brand use guidelines that can be shared with those who require them.'

Regarding promoting the brand logo, Nkate - who is a former minister - said BEDIA had begun rolling out a stakeholder-relations programme that included addressing the media, district councils and various organisations.

Under the programme, BEDIA addressed the Kgatleng District Council on Monday and will soon embark on road shows.

A Botswana Public Awareness Campaign involving 90 locations is on the cards, as are joint implementation of initiatives with key stakeholders. 

BEDIA will also conduct research to measure perceptions of target groups.

Nkate expressed gratitude to the office of the Registrar of Companies for its support and guidance and called on the public and the media to protect the 'Pride Mark.' 

'This visual asset belongs to all of us and must be protected,' he said. 'I must, however, emphasise that it forms only a small segment for what the national identity programme aims to achieve.' The nation branding process was initiated in 2005 and officially launched by the former president, Festus Mogae, the following year.

Two bodies were set up to guide the process, namely; the Brand Leadership Team (BLT) and the Brand Development Team (BDT).

According to a statement from BEDIA, BLT played a visionary role in the brand development process by giving strategic guidance to BDT.  BDT was involved in the development of the creative deliverables of the brand, namely; the logo and strap line, which included the initial conceptualisation, development and final production of the brand strategy. 

The team comprised over 50 members representing various stakeholders. BDT was the operational arm of the brand development process and reported to BLT. 

The brand development process was highly consultative and engaged representatives of the public in order to ensure that all stakeholders' inputs were taken on board.