GIPC has established a Technology Transfer Agreement (TTA) Department
The Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC) has announced the establishment of a Technology Transfer Agreement (TTA) Department to provide swift responses to clients and improve service delivery.
The Director of the Technology Transfer Agreement Department at GIPC, Emmanuel Osei, explained that a technology transfer agreement involves the licensing of industrial property rights, the supply of technical expertise or technical services, the provision of managerial expertise and training, and the distribution of know-how.
According to him, under a TTA, the recipient of the service must be located in Ghana, while the provider of the service must be based outside the country.
Speaking on the sidelines of a stakeholder engagement on June 23, 2025, Osei noted that the duration of a TTA, under current law, should not be less than 18 months and not exceed 10 years.
He said, “Agreements can also be renewed for a further period of five years. When you apply to GIPC, the Centre will review, register, monitor, and keep records of all agreements submitted for registration. When it comes to the renewal of a registration or agreement, the GIPC collaborates with the relevant sector regulator. For example, as you are witnessing here today, we have engagements with various commercial banks and the Bank of Ghana, which is the regulator.”
He further emphasised the decision to create a dedicated department solely for TTA registration, citing the need for speed and efficiency.
“Over the years, we realised that initially, the registration of these agreements was handled by the Legal Division of GIPC. However, to speed up the process, we now have a new Technology Transfer Agreement Division that exclusively handles the registration, review, and monitoring of all TTAs,” Osei explained.
The GIPC is also working on revising the GIPC Bill, which will change the name from “Centre” to “Authority” and amend aspects of the current GIPC Act.
Osei noted, “The laws we are currently using include the GIPC Act, 2013 (Act 865) and the Technology Transfer Regulations, LI 1547, which has been in place since 1992. It has been a long time, so we are currently revising the GIPC Bill and the LI to ensure companies comply with updated legislation.”
He also cautioned that failure to comply with the required processes could result in the revocation of a company’s registration with the Centre, particularly where improper fee transfers are involved.
“Now, we have a dedicated team of lawyers and paralegals who are tasked solely with registering technology transfer agreements to ensure that clients who submit their TTAs to us receive timely registration,” Osei added.
SSD/MA
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