





Chief Guest Dr. Mary Teopista (Center), Amb. Francis Butagira, Registrar General Ms. Mercy K. Kainobwisho and URSB board members pose for a photo at the URSB ISO Certification External Stakeholders celebration
Hon. Nobert Mao congratulates the Registrar General, Ms. Mercy K. Kainobwisho, and Board member, Ms. Lydia A. Sekkabira on the ISO 9001:2015 certification milestone
Mr. Hamidu Tumuhimbise, a senior Registration Officer, attends to a client during the UEB claimants exercise at the Uganda Business Facilitation Center, Kololo
A delegation from PACRA led by the Deputy Registrar Mr. Chewe Peter Chilufya (Center) visited URSB for a 3 days benchmarking visit on the Intellectual Property Registry on how systems operate, the digital improvements implemented and how these reforms contribute to reduced turnaround time
A delegation from UNOC visits URSB to benchmark on the Digital Transformation Journey.
Director General WIPO Mr. Daren Tang, Minister of Justice Hon. Nobert Mao, The Registrar General Ms. Mercy K. Kainobwisho, URSB Board members a delegation from WIPO pause for a photo at the Uganda Business Facilitation Center during the DG’s mission to Uganda

Registrar General Leads URSB Team in Parliament, Clarifies Copyright Bill Provisions
The Registrar General, Ms. Mercy K. Kainobwisho, spearheaded the Uganda Registration Services Bureau team in appearing before the Parliamentary Committee on Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, chaired by Hon. Stephen Mugabi Baka. Accompanied by Deputy Attorney Rt. Hon. Jackson Kafuuzi Karugaba and Board Member Mr. Alex Byaruhanga from the Attorney General’s Office, Ms. Kainobwisho, led a presentation that provided comprehensive clarifications on stakeholder concerns surrounding the Copyright and Neighbouring Rights (Amendment) Bill, 2025 (No. 14 of 2025).
One of the key issues addressed was Clause 17, which empowers the registrar or rights owner to issue takedown notices to service providers under a new Section 49A aligned with the Electronic Transactions Act. Failure to comply could result in a fine of up to UGX 40 million or seven years’ imprisonment. Ms. Kainobwisho highlighted that requiring a Certificate of Registration as prima facie proof of ownership is a necessary safeguard, protecting both creators and the registrar from liability when issuing removal notices.
This engagement builds on earlier consultations where URSB, led by Board Member Annie Katushabe and Ms. Kainobwisho, first presented the Bill to the committee. Additional sessions revealed that URSB supports retaining Clauses 5 and 10, which remain under review.
URSB reiterated its dedication to strengthening Uganda’s copyright ecosystem promoting fairness for creators, facilitating the operation of collective management organizations (CMOs), and modernizing legal frameworks to keep pace with digital-era realities.