Discuss this articleShare your views with other visitors, and read what they have to say
Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) made progress on issues related to traditional knowledge (TK) and Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) during two ad-hoc open ended working group meetings being held in Montreal, Canada.
The first meeting, held from 2-6 November, saw some 300 participants consisting of state delegations, indigenous and local community leaders, and international organisations discuss Article 8(j) and related provisions of the CBD. Article 8(j) covers efforts to protect biodiversity to preserve and maintain knowledge, innovations, and practices in indigenous and other “local” communities. The section also addresses the promotion of such knowledge for wider application with the involvement of the innovators and the encouragement of equitable sharing of benefits.
Members of the Article 8(j) working group agreed to accept recommendations on mechanisms to promote the participation of indigenous and local communities in the maintenance of traditional knowledge on biological diversity. Participants also developed a system for the protection of traditional knowledge, innovation, and practices, as well as established elements for an ethical code of conduct to ensure respect for cultural and intellectual heritage of these communities. The recommendations will be presented at the 10th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the CBD, set to take place from 18-29 October 2010, in Nagoya, Japan.
Balakrishna Pisupati of the UN Environment Programme’s Division for Environmental Law, stressed in a statement that developing systems for traditional knowledge protection, and establishing the ethical code of conduct is critical for achieving the three objectives of the CBD, which consist of conserving biological diversity, using biological diversity in a sustainable manner, and sharing the benefits of biological diversity fairly and equally.
An ongoing meeting of Parties to the Convention taking place from 9-15 November saw delegates exchange views on the international ABS regime, which specifically focuses on establishing an international regime on access to genetic resources and benefit-sharing as a tool to effectively implement Article 15, Article 8(j), and the three objectives of the CBD.
In the first five days of the meeting, the ABS working group discussed the legal nature of the ABS regime, as well as traditional knowledge, capacity-building, and compliance within its context. Delegates have also consolidated draft text to establish a basis for later negotiations. UNEP representatives additionally emphasised the programme’s commitment to the ABS regime, stating they will invest US$5 million in biodiversity activities over the next two years.
ICTSD Reporting.
Add a comment
Enter your details and a comment below, then click Submit Comment. We’ll review and publish the best comments.