Biopiracy was recently discussed at the EU parliament. I don't think this happens everyday so it is worth pointing it out...
MEP of the south-west of france group of the Greens, Catherine Grèze, commented on a study commissioned by the Development Committee. For her, it "reveals or emphasizes the need for a comprehensive approach with regard to the impact of intellectual property rights in developing countries".
She said the two main sectors involved are agriculture and health and that biopiracy has generally two main causes: "lack of regulation in developing countries and / or lack of compliance mechanisms in developed countries. Responsibilities are finally divided - on one hand, developing countries should establish an adequate legal framework for access and benefit-sharing, on the other, developed countries must provide effective mechanisms to ensure sharing fair and equitable benefit from the use of genetic resources."
There are 3 main challenges that the EU should be dealing with:
- make sure that the Nagoya Protocol is ratified.
- reforming the system of intellectual property
- protection of traditional knowledge and recognition of indigenous rights at a EU level
Grèze stressed that "the temptation will be for the EU to hide behind the World Trade Organisation when it could be the driving force and reveal the concerns of poor countries to the rest of the world".
Read Catherine Grèze's itnervention in French here.
MEP of the south-west of france group of the Greens, Catherine Grèze, commented on a study commissioned by the Development Committee. For her, it "reveals or emphasizes the need for a comprehensive approach with regard to the impact of intellectual property rights in developing countries".
She said the two main sectors involved are agriculture and health and that biopiracy has generally two main causes: "lack of regulation in developing countries and / or lack of compliance mechanisms in developed countries. Responsibilities are finally divided - on one hand, developing countries should establish an adequate legal framework for access and benefit-sharing, on the other, developed countries must provide effective mechanisms to ensure sharing fair and equitable benefit from the use of genetic resources."
There are 3 main challenges that the EU should be dealing with:
- make sure that the Nagoya Protocol is ratified.
- reforming the system of intellectual property
- protection of traditional knowledge and recognition of indigenous rights at a EU level
Grèze stressed that "the temptation will be for the EU to hide behind the World Trade Organisation when it could be the driving force and reveal the concerns of poor countries to the rest of the world".
Read Catherine Grèze's itnervention in French here.
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