The World Summit on Sustainable Development was held in Johannesburg in September 2002 following the sixth meeting of the Conference of the Parties. Paragraph 44 (o) of the Plan of Implementation adopted by the Summit called for action to "negotiate within the framework of the Convention on Biological Diversity, bearing in mind the Bonn Guidelines, an international regime to promote and safeguard the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources". Paragraph 44 (n) called for action to promote "the wide implementation of and continued work by the Parties to the Convention on the Bonn Guidelines on Access to Genetic Resources and Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits arising out of their Utilization, as an input to assist the Parties when developing and drafting legislative, administrative or policy measures on access and benefit-sharing as well as contract and other arrangements under mutually agreed terms for access and benefit-sharing".

Following these developments, the issue of an international regime on access and benefit-sharing was addressed as a distinct agenda item by the Inter-sessional meeting on the Multi-Year Programme of Work of the Conference of the Parties up to 2010, in March 2003. The Inter-sessional meeting recommended that "the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing should, in its consideration of other approaches, in accordance with its mandate as specified in decision VI/24 A, consider the process, nature, scope, elements and modalities of an international regime and provide advice to the Conference of the Parties at its seventh meeting on how it may wish to address this issue".

The Inter-sessional meeting also invited Parties to provide information to the Executive Secretary on experience gained in the use of the Bonn Guidelines, taking into consideration information to be provided by Parties pursuant to decision VI/24 A. It also invited Parties, other Governments, indigenous and local communities and relevant organizations to provide their views on the process, nature, scope, elements and modalities of an international regime on access to genetic resources and benefit-sharing prior to the second meeting of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing.

The Executive Secretary was requested to compile information regarding the views of Parties, other Governments, indigenous and local communities and relevant organizations on the process, nature, scope, elements and modalities of an international regime on access to genetic resources and benefit-sharing for the second meeting of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing

The second meeting of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on Access and Benefit-Sharing was held from 1 to 5 December 2003 in Montreal, Canada. At this meeting, the Working Group prepared recommendations on the terms of reference for the negotiation of an international regime which were submitted to the Conference of the Parties at its seventh meeting in February 2004, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Further information, including the text of these recommendations are included in the report of the meeting available as document UNEP/CBD/COP/7/6.

At its seventh meeting, the Conference of the Parties adopted Decision VII/19 on access and benefit-sharing as related to genetic resources, which addresses the issue of an international regime on access and benefit-sharing under section D.

The Conference of the Parties decided “to mandate the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on Access and benefit-sharing with the collaboration of the Ad Hoc Open ended Inter-sessional Working Group on Article 8(j) and related provisions, ensuring the participation of indigenous and local communities, non-governmental organizations, industry and scientific and academic institutions, as well as intergovernmental organizations, to elaborate and negotiate an international regime on access to genetic resources and benefit-sharing with the aim of adopting an intrument/instruments to effectively implement the provisions of Article 15 and Article 8(j) of the Convention and the three objectives of the Convention”.

The Conference of the Parties also agreed on the terms of reference for such negotiation, including the process, nature, scope and elements for consideration in the elaboration of the regime. The terms of reference are included in annex to Decision VII/19 D. The Executive Secretary made arrangements for the Working Group on ABS to be convened twice before the eighth meeting of the Conference of the Parties.

The Working Group held its third meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, from 14 to 18 February 2005 and its fourth meeting in Granada, Spain, from 30 January to 3 February 2006. At these meetings, the Working Group began negotiations for an international regime on access to genetic resources, in accordance with decision VII/19 D of the Conference of the Parties. Recommendations to the eight meeting of the Conference of the Parties on the way forward are included in the report of the fourth meeting.

The eighth meeting of the Conference of the Parties was held in Curitiba, Brazil, from 20 to 31 March 2006. Major outcomes related to the issue of access and benefit-sharing are set out in decision VIII/4. With respect to the international regime on access and benefit-sharing, the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing was requested to continue the elaboration and negotiation of the international regime and was instructed to complete its work at the earliest possible time before the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties 2010. The Executive Secretary was requested to make necessary arrangements for the Working Group to be convened twice before the ninth meeting of the Conference of the Parties. In addition, Tim Hodges from Canada and Fernando Casas from Colombia were designated as co-chairs for the Working Group for the purposes of the elaboration and negotiation of the international regime.

The Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing held its fifth meeting in Montreal, Canada, from 8 to 12 October 2007, and its sixth meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, from 21 to 25 January 2008. In line with decision VIII/4 of the eighth meeting of the Conference of the Parties, the Working Group continued the elaboration and negotiation of the international regime on access and benefit-sharing. Recommendations to the ninth meeting of the Conference of the Parties on the way forward are included in the report of the sixth meeting. Click here for the respective reports of the fifth and sixth meeting.

At its ninth meeting in Bonn, in May 2008, in decision IX/12, paragraph 2, the COP reiterated its instruction to the Working Group to complete the elaboration and negotiation of the international regime at the earliest possible time before the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties. In paragraph 3, the Conference of the Parties further instructed the Working Group to finalize the international regime and to submit for consideration and adoption by the Conference of the Parties at its tenth meeting an instrument\instruments to effectively implement the provisions in Article 15 and Article 8(j) of the Convention and its three objectives, without in any way prejudging or precluding any outcome regarding the nature of such instrument\instruments. The Conference of the Parties also decided that the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing should meet three times prior to the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties, in the first quarter of 2009, the third quarter of 2009 and by the second quarter of 2010. In addition, the COP decided to establish three distinct groups of technical and legal experts on (i) compliance; (ii) concepts, terms, working definitions and sectoral approaches; and (iii) traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources. These expert groups are intended to assist the Working Group by providing legal and, as appropriate, technical advice, including, where appropriate, options and/or scenarios.

The meeting of the group of legal and technical experts on concepts, terms, working definitions and sectoral approaches took place in Windhoek, Namibia, from 2 – 5 December 2008. For the report see here. The meeting of the group of legal and technical experts on compliance took place in Tokyo, Japan, from 27 – 30 January 2009 and the report is available here. Furthermore, the meeting of the group of Technical and Legal Experts on Traditional Knowledge associated with Genetic Resources took place in Hyderabad, India, from 16 - 19 June 2009. Please click here for the report.

The seventh meeting of the Ad hoc Open-ended Working Group on Access and Benefit-sharing took place in Paris, France, from 1 – 8 April 2009. In line with decision IX/12 of the Conference of the Parties, the Working Group addressed objective, scope, compliance, fair and equitable benefit-sharing and access and entered into negotiations of operational text on these issues.

For further information, please visit the Information Portal related to the negotiations of the International Regime on ABS.

Click here for more information on the Working Group on ABS.