Nagoya Protocol
Today, Minister of the Environment Zakia Khattabi introduced to the Council of Ministers the Bill on access to genetic resources and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from their utilization. Genetic resources include all materials of plant, animal or microbial origin containing genetic material.
Businesses around the world are using genetic resources and traditional knowledge from indigenous and local communities to develop new products. These materials are therefore at the heart of great economic challenges and serve as a base for product development in many fields such as Agriculture and Food, Biotechnology, Pharmaceutical Products, Horticulture or Cosmetics.
In order to enable access to such genetic resources, a legal framework must be set up to protect the countries of origin and involve them in the utilization of their resources.
Eight years after the entry into force of the Nagoya Protocol and European Regulation No. 511/2014 and over six years after Belgium ratified the Protocol, the Bill establishes a coherent and comprehensive legal framework for the use of genetic resources belonging to the federal heritage. Federal genetic resources consist, on the one hand, of genetic resources from federal research institutions and, on the other hand, from marine areas under the jurisdiction of Belgium. These resources have been developed over decades and come from various countries. Federal research institutions have a long tradition of scientific co-operation with a wide variety of scientific institutions around the world and in particular with developing countries. The sharing of genetic resources with these partners contributes to the advancement of science and innovation, as well as knowledge transfer and capacity building in developing countries.
The bill includes mandatory notification of commercial and non-commercial uses of federal genetic resources. The law identifies the cases under which this obligation applies and also defines the exceptions, particularly for users who publish their searches in a journal or on open access. The benefits that will be shared under this act will support biodiversity conservation efforts. Under the Act, the competent authority may consult with stakeholders in order to decide on the granting of monetary or non-monetary benefits.
This Nagoya Protocol implementation bill contributes significantly to the establishment of a transparent legal framework for both the suppliers and users of genetic resources. Over time, it will also help address biopiracy issues that some businesses are accused of wanting to develop new products without involving the country of origin or traditional knowledge holders.
