Workshop on the Interface between International Access and Benefit Sharing Rules under the Nagoya Protocol, and Intellectual Property Rights

​The Nagoya Protocol was adopted in 2010 in order to facilitate access to genetic resources and to ensure fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources. Many countries Party to the Nagoya Protocol are required to update existing regulations or to develop new national frameworks on Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS). Consideration of the role of intellectual property (IP) mechanisms is important for the effective implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Nagoya Protocol.

The protection of IP is closely linked to ABS frameworks, as commercialized innovations derived from genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge are often subject to IP rights in the form of patents or plant varieties. IP systems may be designed to play a crucial role in preventing the misappropriation of genetic resources and traditional knowledge ("defensive protection"). Additionally, the use of IP tools for the protection, preservation and marketing of products derived from the utilization of genetic resources and traditional knowledge has the capacity to contribute to the economic development of indigenous and local communities in biodiversity rich countries ("positive protection").

To raise awareness of the linkage between IP, genetic resources, and biodiversity, UNCTAD and INDECOPI are organizing a workshop entitled "The Interface between In¬ternational Access and Benefit Sharing Rules under the Nagoya Protocol and Intellectual Property Rights." This event will present the IP implications of the implementation of the Nagoya Protocol. Recent challenges and developments of IP-related institutional mechanisms at both the national and international levels will be discussed.