This will be my last post on GI for now

And today’s celebrity is Aso-Oke – indigenously and traditionally known as Aso-Ofi

Aso Oke (Aso-Ofi) is an indigenous Yoruba handwoven textile with a rich weaving heritage across several Yoruba communities. Iseyin in Oyo State is particularly renowned for its weaving tradition.¹

Another Nigerian product identified for potential Geographical Indication (GI) protection by AfrIPI² and Jackson, Etti & Edu³, alongside other indigenous products from different parts of Nigeria.

India is a good example of how traditional textiles can benefit from GI protection. From Pochampally Ikat in Telangana to Chanderi Sarees in Madhya Pradesh, Kanchipuram Silk in Tamil Nadu, and Kotpad Handloom Fabric in Odisha, India has secured GI recognition for textiles from different regions. Its GI registrations for these textiles date back to 2004 and 2005.⁴

Let’s come back home. Our neighbours and friends in Ghana have also made progress. Kente, their iconic handwoven textile associated with the Ashanti and Volta regions, became Ghana’s first registered GI on 8 August 2025.⁵

Aso-Oke, on the other hand, remains an important cultural identity and expression of Yoruba heritage, craftsmanship and traditional weaving knowledge in Nigeria.

But beyond its cultural significance, there is an intellectual property question worth considering:

If Ghana can protect Kente through GI registration, what would it take for Nigeria to protect Aso-Oke?

I leave the question to the professionals in the field.

I rest my case and that’s it for now on GI.

Embarking on this series of posts on GI got me to do a lot of research, thinking and writing. I sure learnt a lot.

There’s actually more to look into and to keep talking about but all that could be in a much longer publication.

And I’m also using this medium to thank everyone who engaged, contributed reposted and shared.
Thank y’all

Thank you Premium Law Students Community
ROYALEGAL

Day 26 of posting and writing not for everyone but my fellows. We are lawyers in equity.

New here? I’m David, a law student with a media background, passionate about tech law, IP, digital rights and data protection. I write, draw, and code. Ghostwrite for legal practitioners and build websites for lawyers and law firms through my solo web business.

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1. Heritage: Aso Oke https://asooke.com.ng ↩︎
2. AfrIPI – National GI Workshop in Nigeria (2021)
   Harnessing Policy Support for Geographical Indications in Nigeria ↩︎
3. Jackson, Etti & Edu – Economic Benefits of Establishing GI Protection in Nigeria (2022) ↩︎
4. India – Official GI Registration Records
   Registered GI products and their respective states (PDF)⁠
   India’s searchable GI Registry⁠ ↩︎
5. Ghana Registrar General’s Department – Geographical Indications
   Ghanaian Geographical Indications⁠
   Confirms Kente Cloth as Ghana’s first registered GI on 8 August 2025. ↩︎

Read more about Aso-Oke: https://artsandculture.google.com/story/a-close-up-on-aso-oke-of-the-yoruba-pan-atlantic-university/ZgWB6Y0ZViQKJw?hl=en