My IP Story celebrates African experiences that demonstrate how intellectual property can contribute to value creation and business growth.
Grace Akatuha · Uganda · Bronze Medal
Enterprise: Kikazi Agri-Products Limited, Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Field: Agro-processing and food heritage
Grace Akatuha founded Kikazi Agri-Products Limited, which transforms indigenous foods, including finger millet and cassava, into high-quality flours for modern consumers. Through value addition, the company helps preserve Africa’s food heritage while creating livelihoods and opportunities for smallholder farmers.
Indigenous crops carry an advantage that is easy to lose. Their identity is bound to a place and a practice, and that identity is itself protectable, through trademarks, through geographical indications, through the brand a processor builds around it. Without protection, the crop travels and the value stays with whoever names it first.
