Welcome to the United Nations
Addressee: SCBD, WIPO
Full Text
The Permanent Forum requests the secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity and the World Intellectual Property Organization to assist it in finalizing the study on sui generis systems based on customary laws for the protection of traditional knowledge with a view to advancing its protection.
Responses
SCBD reports: New recommendations arising from both the 7th session (2008) and the 8th session (2009) of the UNPFII made to the Convention will be considered at the 6th meeting of the Working Group on Article 8(j) and related provisions, when it meets in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 2-6 November, 2009 and then forwarded to the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties for final endorsement and action (October 2010, Nagoya, Japan). However, it is important to note that some of the recommendations arising from the report of the UNPFII at its 7th session (refer document E/2008/43) are already in the process of being addressed and/or may be related to previous recommendations and current processes. The Secretariat therefore takes this opportunity for a quick update on new recommendations.
Sui generis working document (refer UNEP/CBD/WG8J/5/6) is being revised in collaboration with WIPO and UNPFII and with input from Parties, governments, agencies and indigenous and local community representatives for the consideration of 6th Working Group on Article 8j will be available through the Secretariat webpage as early as May, 2009. After consideration by the Working Group as draft decision will be sent to the governing body (COP 10) for adoption and action.
The “sui generis system” working document (see UNEP/CBD/WG8J/5/6) was being revised in collaboration with the World Intellectual Property Organization and the Permanent Forum and with input from parties, Governments, agencies and indigenous and local communities representatives for consideration at the 6th meeting of the Working Group on Article 8 (j), which met in November 2009. After consideration by the Working Group, a draft decision was formulated and agreed to and will be sent to the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties for adoption and action. The decisions will guide the work of the Working Group on Article 8 (j) for the next biennium and influence future work leading up to 2020.
A study on compliance in relation to the customary law of indigenous and local communities, national law, across jurisdictions, and international law, by indigenous experts, was commissioned by the secretariat, in response to decision IX/12, paragraph 13(e) of the ninth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to inform the development and negotiation of the international regime on access and benefit-sharing. The study was made available to the meeting of the group of technical and legal experts on compliance in the context of the international regime on access and benefit-sharing and the 7th and 8th meetings of the Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing. All relevant documents produced by the secretariat have been forwarded through the secretariat of the Permanent Forum to the Special Rapporteur on sui generis systems for his consideration.
25. In decision IX/12, paragraph 11, the Conference of the Parties considered, inter alia, the recommendations of the Permanent Forum and decided to establish three distinct groups of technical and legal experts on: (a) compliance; (b) concepts, terms, working definitions and sectoral approaches; and (c) traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources.
26. The meeting of the expert group on traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources was held in Hyderabad, India from 16 to 19 June 2009 and the report (UNEP/CBD/WG-ABS/8/2) has been made available for consideration at the 8th meeting of the Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing and to the Working Group on Article 8 (j) for its information.
With a view to ensuring that traditional knowledge issues and indigenous peoples rights are fully addressed in the development of an international regime on access and benefit-sharing, some parties and regional groupings, in collaboration with the secretariat, have also pursued their own initiatives, such as the European Union-sponsored Vienna workshop on matters related to traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources and the international access and benefit-sharing regime, which was held from 15 to 17 December 2008, and the Vilm workshop on matters related to traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources and the international regime on access and benefit-sharing, which was sponsored by the Government of Germany and held on the Ilse of Vilm from 6 to 10 June 2009. The reports of those meetings were submitted to the 8th meeting of the Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing.
Finally, indigenous and local communities are working with the Government of Spain and the secretariat to ensure the effective participation of indigenous and local communities in the access and benefit-sharing intersessional process (between the 8th and 9th meetings of the Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing). Further to this, the Government of Spain has agreed to fund a meeting of indigenous negotiators, facilitated by the secretariat in Madrid, in February 2010.
SCBD reports: New recommendations arising from both the 7th session (2008) and the 8th session (2009) of the UNPFII made to the Convention will be considered at the 6th meeting of the Working Group on Article 8(j) and related provisions, when it meets in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 2-6 November, 2009 and then forwarded to the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties for final endorsement and action (October 2010, Nagoya, Japan). However, it is important to note that some of the recommendations arising from the report of the UNPFII at its 7th session (refer document E/2008/43) are already in the process of being addressed and/or may be related to previous recommendations and current processes. The Secretariat therefore takes this opportunity for a quick update on new recommendations. In decision IX/12, paragraph 11, the COP considered the UNPFII recommendations, amongst other things, and decided to establish three distinct groups of technical and legal experts on: (i) compliance; (ii) concepts, terms, working definitions and sectoral approaches; and (iii) traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources. The terms of reference of the groups, including the criteria for the selection of experts are laid out in annex II to the present decision and included below; C. Expert Group on traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources1. A group of technical and legal experts on traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources is established to further examine the issue of traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources in order to assist the Working Group on Access and Benefit sharing. The expert group shall provide legal and technical advice, including, where appropriate, options and/or scenarios. The expert group will address the following questions: (a) What is the relationship between access and use of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge? (b) What practical impacts should the negotiations of the international regime take into account based on the range of community level procedures and customary systems of indigenous and local communities for regulating access to traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources at the community level? (c) Identify the range of community level procedures and determine to what extent customary laws of indigenous and local communities regulate access to genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge at the community level and its relevance to the international regime; (d) To what extent measures to ensure compliance with prior informed consent and mutually agreed terms under Article 15 also support the prior informed consent of indigenous and local communities for the use of their associated traditional knowledge? (e) Identify elements and procedural asaspects for the prior informed consent of holders of associated traditional knowledge when traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources is accessed also taking into account potential trans-boundary contexts of such associated traditional knowledge and identifying best practice examples; (f) Is there a basis for prior informed consent for indigenous and local communities relative to traditional knowledge associated to genetic resources in international law? If so, how can it be reflected in the international regime? (g) Assess options, considering the practical difficulties and distinct implementation challenges, for including traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources in a potential internationally recognized certificate issued by the competent domestic authority also by considering the possibility of a declaration on such certificate as to whether there is any associated traditional knowledge and who the relevant holders of traditional knowledge are;h) How to define traditional knowledge associated to genetic resources in the context of access and benefit-sharing? 2. The expert group shall be regionally balanced and composed of thirty experts nominated by Parties and fifteen observers, including seven observers from indigenous and local communities nominated by them, and remaining observers from, inter alia, international organizations and agreements, industry, research institutions/academia and non-governmental organizations. 3. Parties are also encouraged to nominate experts from indigenous and local communities where possible. Furthermore, to ensure that traditional knowledge issues and indigenous peoples’ rights are fully addressed in the development of an international regime on access and benefit-sharing, some Parties and regional groupings, in collaboration with the Secretariat, have also pursued their own initiatives as the EU sponsored Vienna Workshop on Matters related to Traditional Knowledge associated with Genetic Resources and the International ABS Regime, which was held from 15 - 17 December 2008.
Final Report of UNPFII Session 7 (2008)
Area of Work
