Un article consacré à la régulation de la bioprospection dans le cadre du Protocole de Nagoya, qui vise à stopper la biopiraterie, et dans un objectif global de conservation de la biodiversité.
Points clés [en anglais] :
- THE REGULATION OF BIOPROSPECTING: WHAT IS IT? AND WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?
The need to protect biodiversity and to promote fairness in the use of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge has engendered one of the most contentious debates of the 21st century between developed and developing countries. This debate has fundamental implications for the way in which basic and applied research on genetic resources and biodiversity is conducted and its results are made available between and within peoples and societies. Therefore, the regulation of bioprospecting –i.e. “the search for plant and animal species from which medicinal drugs and other commercially valuable compounds can be obtained”– not only tells stories about biodiversity conservation, but also about food security, global health, intellectual property, indigenous peoples, equity, justice and human rights.
- NEW PERSPECTIVES: BIOPROSPECTING CONTRACTS AS MARKETBASED INSTRUMENTS
In a context of financial constraint, MBIs are seen as a potential tool to help foster biodiversity conservation. As private contracts between two (or more) parties (theoretically Coasean agreements), bioprospecting contracts could be more efficient than command-and-control regulations aimed at biodiversity conservation. Aiming to regulate bioprospecting, the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and Benefit Sharing (ABS), adopted in 2010, should help to stop the misappropriation of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge (known as ‘biopiracy’), while providing legal certainty for public and private users of such resources.
- MONETARY AND NON-MONETARY BENEFITS, AND BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION
The appropriate regulation of bioprospecting activities holds potential for generating additional resources and incentives for biodiversity conservation, including at the local level, which could counterbalance the monetary gains arising from activities degrading biodiversity. However, the total value arising from the utilization of genetic resources through bioprospecting can be relatively low and uncertain, with important differences between sectors. Thus, its conservation potential might be limited, though not entirely negligible. Key ABS-related drivers in the interest of biodiversity conservation include: decreasing transaction costs through model contracts; increasing the bargaining power of Southern countries and stakeholders through capacity development; the application of ABSrelated certification standards in BioTrade; and the recognition of the rights of indigenous and local communities.
