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FIRST AD HOC OPEN-ENDED WORKING GROUP ON
ACCESS AND BENEFIT-SHARING


 22-26 October 2001 Bonn, Germany

Web Archive:

 



Highlights of Monday, 22 October 2001
 
The first meeting of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing (ABS) under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) began its delibera­tions, as delegates heard opening statements and considered orga­nizational matters in a morning Plenary. In the afternoon, two Sub-Working Groups convened to address substantive issues. Sub-Working Group I (SWG-I) discussed the development of draft international guidelines on ABS, and Sub-Working Group II (SWG-II) discussed an action plan for capacity building. Left photo: Bird's eye view of the opening plenary of the First Ad Hoc Working Group on Access and Benefit Sharing.

 

 



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OPENING PLENARY: OPENING STATEMENTS
Ruben Olembo (left), on behalf of Noah Katana Ngala, COP-5 Bureau President and Minister of Environment and Natural Resources of the Republic of Kenya, opened the meeting. He highlighted developing countries' interests in ABS guidelines, especially for poverty reduction and sustainable development.

 
Bärbel Dieckmann (right), Mayor of Bonn, welcomed participants and highlighted the city as a prime location for worldwide dialogue on environmental issues. She noted that developing countries contain a large proportion of biodiversity and that developed countries have a duty to accept responsibilities towards them. 

to follow
Gila Altmann (left), Parliamentary State Secretary of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, discussed the importance of biodiversity conservation as a focal point in German environmental policy, and highlighted some of the problems of environmental degradation in Germany.

Listen to Gila Altmann's opening remarks
Paul Chabeda (left), on behalf of Klaus Töpfer, Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme, highlighted the importance of ABS in realizing the CBD's objectives, as the issue underscores the principle of equity. He also reviewed Decision V/26 establishing the Working Group and its mandate to develop guidelines and other approaches to ABS. 

Listen to Paul Chabeda's opening remarks on behalf of the UNEP Executive Director 
CBD Executive Secretary Hamdallah Zedan (left) thanked the Government of Germany for its financial and technical support, as well as the Governments of Sweden and the UK. Noting work done by the Experts' Panel, he said this meeting marks a new and crucial stage in the CBD process and that successful guidelines on ABS will be used to judge the Convention's effectiveness.  

CBD Executive Secretary Hamdallah Zedan's opening remarks

ORGANIZATIONAL MATTERS:
Olembo introduced the agenda (UNEP/CBD/WG-ABS/1/1/Add.1/Rev.1), which was adopted without comment. Delegates elected, as per the COP-5 Bureau's suggestion, Gila Altmann (Germany) and Mohamad bin Osman (Malaysia) as the meeting's Co-Chairs. They also approved the meeting's organization of work: SWG-I, chaired by Birthe Ivars (Norway), would address the development of draft international ABS guidelines; and SWG-II, chaired by José Cabrera Medaglia (Costa Rica), would address other approaches, including an action plan for capacity building, and intellectual property rights (IPR) in ABS arrangements.
SWG-I Chair Medaglia (left) reported on the outcomes of Panel of Experts meetings in Costa Rica (UNEP/CBD/COP/5/8) and Montreal (UNEP/CBD/ABS-WG/1/2).
WIPO reviewed the work of its Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore with regard to: guiding contractual practices and model IPR clauses for ABS arrangements; traditional knowledge; and cooperation with the CBD and the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. 

Listen Shakeel Bhatti deliver his opening statements on behalf of WIPO
The UN FOOD AND AGRICULTURAL ORGANIZATION (FAO) provided an update on the negotiations for the revision of the International Undertaking (IU), as in Annex II of UNEP/CBD/WG-ABS/1/3, and said that an Open-ended Working Group would convene from 30 October to 1 November to address pending items and finalize the text for the agreement to be adopted during the upcoming FAO Conference.

Listen to David Cooper's opening statement on behalf of FAO
The UN CONFERENCE ON TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT reported on recent meetings on the role of traditional knowledge in trade and development, with specific regard to strategies for cooperation with WIPO and other relevant bodies, the BIOTRADE Initiative, development of country-specific capacity-building projects, and the harnessing of traditional knowledge for trade and development.  

Sophia Twarog delivers her opening statement on behalf of UNCTAD



The INTERNATIONAL INDIGENOUS FORUM ON BIODIVERSITY presented the statement of its meeting held from 15-21 October
2001. Noting that the CBD was negotiated without the participation of indigenous peoples, the Forum emphasized, inter alia, the links between indigenous peoples and biodiversity with reference to the role of women in preserving this biodiversity, and the collective rights of indegenous peoples.  

Listen to Esther Camac's opening statement on behalf of the Indigenous Forum 
A representative of the National Session of the GLOBAL BIODIVERSITY FORUM for Germany highlighted its recent deliberations, noting the need to, inter alia: broaden ABS debates beyond commercial aspects to include conservation, sustainable use, the ecosystem approach and poverty alleviation; adopt measures regarding user responsibilities; ensure that IPR support the CBD's objectives; and support development, implementation and monitoring of national ABS policies.

Listen to Johnson Ekpere deliver his opening statement on behalf of the GBF
BELGIUM, on behalf of the EU, stressed the need for mutual support among the ABS guidelines and relevant initiatives in other fora. IRAN, on behalf of the G-77/CHINA, highlighted benefit-sharing's significance for developing countries. TOGO (right), on behalf of the AFRICAN GROUP, said that benefit-sharing is one of the preconditions for biodiversity conservation and that access is closely related to traditional knowledge. Right photo: Kofi Dantsey Edinam giving his opening statement on behalf of the AFRICAN GROUP.
SUB-WORKING GROUP I:
The Secretariat introduced document UNEP/CBD/WG-ABS/1/3. SWG-I Chair Ivars called for comments on the guidelines' key features, as included in Section II of the document. The G-77/CHINA, noted that, pending regional consultations, comments would be preliminary. Right photo: The WG I dias chaired by Birthe Ivars (second from right) of Norway.
SUB-WORKING GROUP II:
SWG-II Chair Medaglia (center) introduced the agenda item on an action plan for capacity building. The Secretariat reviewed documents UNEP/CBD/WG-ABS/1/2 and 3. Chair Medaglia noted that SWG-II could either complete a detailed plan of action or indicate the main elements of such a plan.
ENB ABS-WG1 SNAPSHOTS:


ENB Summary of the 2nd Experts Panel on Access and Benefit Sharing
ENB coverage of ABS-1
ENB coverage of SBSTTA-6

CBD Secretariat web site with official documents, information for participants and Pre-Registration Form
ENB's Introduction to the CBD
World Intellectual Property Organization
click to top 

© 2001, IISD. All rights reserved.

© 2001, IISD. All rights reserved.

 


ENB Summary of the 2nd Experts Panel on Access and Benefit Sharing
ENB coverage of ABS-1
ENB coverage of SBSTTA-6

CBD Secretariat web site with official documents, information for participants and Pre-Registration Form
ENB's Introduction to the CBD
World Intellectual Property Organization
click to top 

© 2001, IISD. All rights reserved.