(Business in Cameroon) - Two agricultural products, Oku honey and Penja pepper (photo), unique products in taste, origin and commercial value grown in the North-West, Littoral and South-West regions, will soon be protected by the African Intellectual Property Rights Organisation (OAPI).

“Placing a product under such protection reduces the likelihood of piracy, fraud and counterfeiting but significantly boosts farmers’ incomes”, OAPI Deputy General Manager, Ayite Juliette, told Cameroon Tribune during a two-day regional seminar on geographic indications, last Thursday February the 28^th, 2013.

In the case of Penja paper grown in Mbanaga, Njombé-Penja, Loum, Manjo and Tombel, it took four years of work and lobbying to arrive at this stage and it was financed partly by the French Development Agency (AFD) to the tune of 655 million francs CFA.A kilogram of Penja pepper (small grains) cost CFAF 7500, and CFAF 9000 for big grains. Certification will increase these prices.