Response to the 2018 Sarr-Savoy Report: Statement on Intellectual Property Rights and Open Access relevant to the digitization and restitution of African Cultural Heritage and associated materials

Abstract

This response challenges the recommendations made by the Sarr-Savoy Report to systematically digitize and make available online as “open access” all of the African Cultural Heritage designated for restitution. Instead, we write to acknowledge the complex issues regarding intellectual property rights and open access policies around these materials, and we call on the French Government to dedicate further resources to researching and co-developing digitization solutions with African communities of origin.