





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

Uganda’s Designs Go Global as URSB Joins EUIPO’s DESIGNview Platform
Uganda has scored a major win in its journey toward global market integration, as the Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB) officially made its industrial design data available on the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) DESIGNview search tool as of Monday, 15 December 2025.
This positive development means that more than 1,200 industrial designs registered in Uganda can now be searched and viewed by innovators, investors, and businesses worldwide. With URSB’s inclusion, DESIGNview now offers access to over 24 million industrial designs from 76 participating intellectual property offices, strengthening transparency and cross-border innovation.
Since its launch in 2012, DESIGNview has recorded over 10.9 million searches, with users from the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom leading global interest. Uganda’s presence on this widely used platform significantly boosts the visibility of local creativity, giving Ugandan designers and enterprises greater protection, recognition, and commercial opportunity in international markets.
The EUIPO, renowned for providing free and high-quality intellectual property data, has championed market openness through platforms like DESIGNview. The integration of URSB’s data reflects the success of ongoing EUIPO collaboration in Africa, supported by the EU-funded AfrIPI project, which aims to strengthen intellectual property systems across the continent.
For Uganda, this milestone reinforces confidence in its intellectual property framework, supports innovation-led growth, and aligns with national efforts to formalize businesses and attract investment.