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Access to Knowledge in Africa: The Role of Copyright
Based on the work of the African Copyright and Access to Knowledge (ACA2K) research network, this book describes the legal and practical issues posed by copyright for access to learning materials in eight countries in Africa—Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambique, Senegal, South Africa and Uganda. It identifies the policies and practices that would broaden this access.
384 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2010
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June 6, 2021
Well...
The good:
The topics are well defined and the chapters are very thorough. The authors kept to the point and didn't ramble in unnecessary things.
Aside from the introduction and the final conclusions, the items given for the chapters was: (i) Background, (ii) Doctrinal analysis, (iii) Qualitative analysis and (iv) Conclusions and recommendations; except for Kenya where a item related to gender differences was included.
This showed a lot of organisation, quite necessary, especially since given that the authors are from all over the contient, hence different formats/citation criteria could have been expected. Kudos to the editors, then!
A few surprising facts: Unlike other countries, in Mozambique there are more males in schools than females... and females are more likely to repeat grades and not graduate. Private property was discouraged. They haven't subscribed to Berne, but they're stuck with the WTO (hence, Berne provisions exist). (Oh, evil globalisation... What would be of the first world countries world withour you?).
Egypt requieres of payment of fees to the State if the translation is for commercial or professional purposes in cases of foreign works that have not been translated into Arabic within three years after first publication. (After reading this, it came into my mind one interview with Dawkins where he mentioned that while the official edition of his 'God Delusion' was heavily censored, pirate copies in Arabic had appeared. Well, according to Egypt's copyright law, translators didn't need his permission in the first place since, arguably, the book could be thought for educational purpouses. However, if permission were needed for commercial purpouses, it'd been from the State, not Dawkins... Needless to say, no way in h3ll the State would have allowed such a blasfemous book to be translated in the first place.) De facto, the State owns copyright (or at least licensing). National folkore is public domain. Books are not borrowed in libraries. :v
In Ghana, if the copyright in a work is vested in a corporate body, protection is, in general, offered for 70 years. For works of folklore, protection is vested in the state and the term of protection is perpetual.
The bad:
Dry as any academic book can be... Geezus Lawrd, I know it's an academic book, but damn... this is also the Sahara desert.
Some of the interviews seemed pointless. Are opinions all we need for making a case? Of course not! And, sure, doctrine, law, jurisprudence were used; but given that some of the interviewees were oblivious of basic copyright law, well... it begs the question: how come are those opinions relevant? Unless it is to make a case about the anti-intellectualism or mediocrity of these people (ahem... librarians), then... (I bet the interviewers wanted to shoot themselves in the head.)
The ugly:
The format. Uff... It's obvious that some pages have 1,5 interspace with others 1,15 (or so). That was very annoying.
This is obviously for people who work especifically in copyright. (Geezus Xrist... Librarians of Africa: READ THE EFFING BOOK.)
The good:
The topics are well defined and the chapters are very thorough. The authors kept to the point and didn't ramble in unnecessary things.
Aside from the introduction and the final conclusions, the items given for the chapters was: (i) Background, (ii) Doctrinal analysis, (iii) Qualitative analysis and (iv) Conclusions and recommendations; except for Kenya where a item related to gender differences was included.
This showed a lot of organisation, quite necessary, especially since given that the authors are from all over the contient, hence different formats/citation criteria could have been expected. Kudos to the editors, then!
A few surprising facts: Unlike other countries, in Mozambique there are more males in schools than females... and females are more likely to repeat grades and not graduate. Private property was discouraged. They haven't subscribed to Berne, but they're stuck with the WTO (hence, Berne provisions exist). (Oh, evil globalisation... What would be of the first world countries world withour you?).
Egypt requieres of payment of fees to the State if the translation is for commercial or professional purposes in cases of foreign works that have not been translated into Arabic within three years after first publication. (After reading this, it came into my mind one interview with Dawkins where he mentioned that while the official edition of his 'God Delusion' was heavily censored, pirate copies in Arabic had appeared. Well, according to Egypt's copyright law, translators didn't need his permission in the first place since, arguably, the book could be thought for educational purpouses. However, if permission were needed for commercial purpouses, it'd been from the State, not Dawkins... Needless to say, no way in h3ll the State would have allowed such a blasfemous book to be translated in the first place.) De facto, the State owns copyright (or at least licensing). National folkore is public domain. Books are not borrowed in libraries. :v
In Ghana, if the copyright in a work is vested in a corporate body, protection is, in general, offered for 70 years. For works of folklore, protection is vested in the state and the term of protection is perpetual.
The bad:
Dry as any academic book can be... Geezus Lawrd, I know it's an academic book, but damn... this is also the Sahara desert.
Some of the interviews seemed pointless. Are opinions all we need for making a case? Of course not! And, sure, doctrine, law, jurisprudence were used; but given that some of the interviewees were oblivious of basic copyright law, well... it begs the question: how come are those opinions relevant? Unless it is to make a case about the anti-intellectualism or mediocrity of these people (ahem... librarians), then... (I bet the interviewers wanted to shoot themselves in the head.)
The ugly:
The format. Uff... It's obvious that some pages have 1,5 interspace with others 1,15 (or so). That was very annoying.
This is obviously for people who work especifically in copyright. (Geezus Xrist... Librarians of Africa: READ THE EFFING BOOK.)
Displaying 1 of 1 review