The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has been working closely with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development (MESD), to help the country to effectively implement access and benefit sharing (ABS) mechanism/framework in accordance with the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity. As one of the megadiverse countries in Africa, the DRC has been a Party to the Nagoya Protocol since 2015.
Law No. 14/003 of 21 February 2014 on the conservation of nature comprises a section dedicated on “Biological resources, genetic resources and traditional knowledge” where it sets the mandate for the adoption of ABS secondary legislation. On that basis, the new regulations are expected to elaborate on the details and provide clarity regarding the implementation of ABS in the country. In the process of developing those regulations, during the past months, several stakeholders have highlighted the need for the country to have a specific law on ABS, as a more authoritative and comprehensive instrument regulating ABS.
The workshop on the implementation of the Nagoya Protocol that took place in Kinshasa on 3 and 4 March 2020 was a platform to debate on whether regulations or a new law would be the most appropriate instrument to regulate ABS in the country. It brought together various stakeholders, including practicing lawyers, members of the judiciary, government officials representing the ministry of environment and sustainable development and the ministry of industry, medical practitioners, academia, and non-governmental organizations. UNEP supported the process with expert advice on an effective ABS framework. At the end of the workshop, participants agreed to go ahead with the development of regulations and at the same time work towards the development of a special law on ABS in the future. Lessons learned from the implementation of the ABS regulations would inform the new special law, to be approved by the Parliament.
The workshop took place in the context of the Global Environment Facility project “Effective National Implementation of Access and Benefit Sharing in accordance with the Nagoya Protocol and Valorization of Botanical Plants (Medicinal, Cosmetic and Nutraceuticals) in the Democratic Republic of Congo”. This is a three-year project, which was launched in July 2019. Activities are carried out in close collaboration with the MESD and the non-governmental organization Action d’Aide Sanitaire pour le Développement (AASD).
For more information, please contact Emmanuel.adonsou[at]un.org I Aphrodite.Smagadi[at]un.org I Catherine.Abuto[at]un.org
