Access to Genetic Resources & Benefit-sharing

26 April 2011: In the March issue of its Monthly Bulletin of Activities, the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) highlights several recent meetings and activities, including the opening for signature of the Nagoya-Kuala Lumpur Supplementary Protocol on Liability and Redress to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety and the Asia-Pacific Regional Consultation on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries, including on relevant biodiversity safeguards.

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April 2011: The Secretariat of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGR) has produced the first in a series of five comprehensive educational modules on the operation of the Treaty.

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18 April 2011: The Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has announced that the indigenous and local community (ILC) representatives are to receive financial assistance for their participation in the upcoming meeting on sustainable and customary use of biodiversity, as well as the first meeting of the Open-ended Ad Hoc Intergovernmental Committee for the Nagoya Protocol on access and benefit-sharing (ABS).

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17 April 2011: The Open-ended Working Group on Pandemic Influenza Preparedness (PIP-OEWG) of the World Health Organization (WHO) has agreed on a framework to ensure sharing of viruses and access to essential vaccines and medicines in case of pandemic.

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The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) promotes collaboration for attaining three important global objectives: (i) conservation of biodiversity; (ii) sustainable use of its components; and (iii) equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the access and utilization of genetic resources and transfer of relevant technologies. The adoption in 2010, the International Year of Biodiversity, of a new protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) to promote international co-operation with regard to objective (iii), will open a new era for international co-operation on biodiversity policy and practice to demonstrate that conservation and use of biodiversity are necessary conditions for sustainable development.

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12 April 2011: Organized in collaboration with the Country Support Programme of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the Asia Regional Workshop on Biodiversity and Finance in Support of the Nagoya Outcomes of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was held on 8 April 2011, in Da Lat, Viet Nam.

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7 April 2011: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) has released the 90th edition of its BiotechNews Update, featuring articles about activities and publications in the area of biotechnology in food and agriculture by FAO and other international organizations.

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7 April 2011: Ecuador and the Central African Republic (CAR) became the latest countries to sign the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization (ABS) under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).

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A partnership between the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and Mauritius' Centre for Phytotherapy and Research, this workshop aims to share information and experience of the Indian Ocean SIDS and Madagascar in the conservation, management and exploitation of the region's medicinal plants. Special emphasis will be laid on: the role of natural products chemistry and potential for drug development in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries; policy frameworks for management and conservation; and intellectual property rights and access and benefit sharing.  

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In early May 2010, the world received a wake-up call. Global Biodiversity Outlook 3, based on the best available scientific evidence and drawing from 120 national reports of Parties to the Convention, warned of the consequences of our current development path. The continuing loss of species and habitats, predicted to accelerate under the growing impact of climate change, has placed so much pressure on the life-supporting ecosystems of our world, that many risk passing a “tipping point.” We were reminded that the status of biodiversity for millions of years to come will be determined by the actions that human society takes in the coming decades.

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