EIFL and our partner, the Kenya Library and Information Services Consortium (KLISC), submitted joint comments on Kenya’s draft policy framework for the regulation of collective management organizations (CMOs) in Kenya. CMOs are organizations that manage rights on behalf of authors, performing artists, producers and other rights owners.

The draft policy framework came about after a three-year forensic audit initiated by the Kenya Copyright Board (KEBOKO), which revealed serious risk of misappropriation of funds, fraudulent transactions, and poor corporate governance by three CMOs dealing with music and performers rights.  

EIFL and KLISC made six recommendations to tackle two key shortcomings of the draft policy: 

• The CMO with which a library has the most dealings is usually a reproduction rights organization (RRO), that grants licences for the making of copies (photocopying and/or digital copies). However, RROs are missing from the draft policy framework.
• The issue of the relationship between the CMO and its customers, such as libraries, is also absent and also needs to be addressed.