The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Trade and Industry, Emmanuel Hategeka, has called on local artistes to be innovative and creative to enable them compete favourably with their counterparts in the region and beyond.

Hategeka made the call, Tuesday, during a worship to mark the international Intellectual Property Rights Day.

"The government has taken a great step towards promoting your respective careers as artistes. I encourage you to register your crafts with the Registrar General to ensure that they are not pirated,” he said.

Hategeka further encouraged the artistes to market and advertise their products. He noted that it was important to invest in research and development of intellectual property, saying that this would enable artistes to progress sustainably.

He added that Rwanda was finalising the process of  joining other intellectual property organisations like African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (AFRIPO).

Narcisse Mitali, aka Natty Dread, a prominent musician, thanked the government for organising the conference, saying that this was one of the ways local artists would advance and compete internationally.

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