Brenda Matanga
Key details
- Job title: Founder, Head of Practice and Lead IP Counsel
- Firm: BMatanga IP Attorneys
- Jurisdiction: Zimbabwe
Brenda Matanga is a leading African IP practitioner, founder of a specialist IP firm, and a contributor to regional and global IP policy development, with sustained impact on trademark systems, enforcement frameworks, and institutional reform across Africa.
She holds an LLB (Hons) from the University of Zimbabwe and an LLM in intellectual property law from the University of Turin, which is organised in partnership with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
Throughout her career, Matanga has advised multinational corporations, regional businesses, and emerging startups on all aspects of intellectual property, including trademarks, patents, copyright, industrial designs, anti-counterfeiting strategy, portfolio management, and IP transactions. She has led complex enforcement and litigation matters, contributing to the development of IP jurisprudence in Zimbabwe and strengthening rights protection frameworks in practice.
Matanga is a former president of the Zimbabwe Institute of Patent and Trademark Agents (ZIPTA), where she contributed to strengthening professional standards and capacity building within the IP profession. She has also served as chairperson of an Africa Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) Working Group responsible for reviewing and modernising regional IP legal instruments, contributing directly to harmonisation and reform efforts across African jurisdictions.
Matanga is engaged in the international IP community through the International Trademark Association (INTA), where she has served on multiple committees, including the Unreal Campaign Committee, the Brands for a Better Society Committee, and the Africa Global Advisory Council. She currently serves as chair of the Consumer Association Subcommittee within the Building Bridges Committee, reflecting her leadership in advancing balanced IP systems that integrate consumer protection and brand enforcement.
Matanga is widely recognised for her leadership and impact, including as a World Intellectual Property Review leader and accolades that place her among the most influential women in IP globally.