The Anti-Counterfeit Authority has called on Kenya’s innovators, researchers and technology developers to actively partner with them in building next-generation tools to combat counterfeiting and protect intellectual property.
Speaking at the Open University of Kenya Innovation Week, State Department of Science, Research and Innovation Principal Secretary Prof. Shaukat Abdulrazak painted an ambitious picture of Kenya’s innovation potential, challenging stakeholders to build synergies that would position the country on the global stage.
“Kenya, through innovation, can reach that global status and compete with first-world countries. Innovation creates entrepreneurship, entrepreneurship creates jobs and thus grows our economy. Innovators need to think outside the box and challenge conventional thinking,” he said.
ACA Executive Director Dr. Robi King’a encouraged innovators, entrepreneurs and students that the Authority cannot fight 21st-century counterfeiting alone.
“The Anti-Counterfeit Authority does not have a monopoly on good ideas. We need you,” he said.
Dr. King’a outlined two flagship ACA initiatives: the Anti-Counterfeit Integrated Management System (AIMS), a digital platform for real-time intelligence and coordinated enforcement, and the Anti-Counterfeit Security Device being operationalised under Section 34B of the Anti-Counterfeit Act.
The device introduces a digitally verifiable certification mark affixed to designated goods before they enter the Kenyan market. Consumers verify it with a smartphone with enforcement officers scanning it at the border, warehouse or shelf. Every genuine product becomes self-declaring. Every scan generates actionable intelligence.
He called on AI developers, blockchain specialists, Internet of Things (IoT) builders and data scientists to help strengthen these systems, noting that the Authority is open for partnership through joint research, hackathons, pilot deployments and internships.
“The protector of innovation must itself be a consumer of innovation,” Dr King’a said. The OUK Innovation Week runs from 29th to 30th June 2026.
