Road to COP15 Montreal: Cameroon hopes to benefit from its rich biodiversity

Subject :Environment

Context-

Cameroon hopes to draw maximum benefits from biological resources it have preserved for years as the world prepares to convene at the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Montreal, Canada, from December 7-19, 2022.

About Nagoya Protocol-

The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization (ABS) is a supplementary agreement to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
It provides a transparent legal framework for the effective implementation of one of the three objectives of the CBD: the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources.
The Nagoya Protocol on ABS was adopted on 29 October 2010 in Nagoya, Japan and entered into force on 12 October 2014, 90 days after the deposit of the fiftieth instrument of ratification.
It is supplementary to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD).

Coverage-

The Nagoya Protocol applies to genetic resources that are covered by the CBD, and to the benefits arising from their utilization.
The Nagoya Protocol also covers traditional knowledge (TK) associated with genetic resources that are covered by the CBD and the benefits arising from its utilization.

Importance-

The Nagoya Protocol will create greater legal certainty and transparency for both providers and users of genetic resources by:
Establishing more predictable conditions for access to genetic resources.
Helping to ensure benefit-sharing when genetic resources leave the country providing the genetic resources
By helping to ensure benefit-sharing, the Nagoya Protocol creates incentives to conserve and sustainably use genetic resources, and therefore enhances the contribution of biodiversity to development and human well-being.

India Signatory to Protocol-

India signed the Nagoya Protocol in 2011 and ratified it in October 2012.
The ratification by India was done at the 11th Conference of Parties (COP) to the CBD, which was conducted in Hyderabad.

Cameron and Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS)-

Cameroon plans to use biodiversity for development and in 2012, came up with a National Strategy on ABS.
- The Strategy provided a national vision to develop an ABS legal framework by 2020 to guide the implementation of the Nagoya Protocol in such a way that it benefits the local and indigenous communities.
- The benefits coming from the use of those genetic resources would enhance the living conditions of local people and generate income for the state in terms of taxes.
Law No 2021-014 — governing access to genetic resources, their derivatives, traditional knowledge and benefit-sharing — was enacted in July 2021. With this, Cameroon became the second African country to come up with such a legal instrument.
These measures established the terms and conditions governing access to genetic resources, their derivatives and associated traditional knowledge in Cameroon.

Echinops giganteus.

Echinops giganteus is a plant that is used worldwide in the cosmetics and food industries.
It is native to Nigeria, Ethiopia and Tanzania.
The plant is grown mostly in the wild, but there are now efforts at planting it, given the likely financial rewards.
The plant species was inventoried, studied and this eventually led to the company signing an agreement with the government of Cameroon in 2015 to exploit a limited quantity to test the viability of this product.
Hence, for the first time, the wild plant began to be planted in efforts not only to promote it but also as part of the ABS process and restore the ecology of the Mt Bamboutous, where it is mostly grown.
The project encouraged many women to engage in bee farming.

Mondiawhitei-

It is a perennial herbaceous/woody climber belonging to the family Apocynaceae, and as with most members of this family, has milky latex.
Two species of Mondia are recognised, the other being Mondiaecornuta.
Known in some localities as ‘gondolosi’, in Kenya it is known as ‘mukombero’, the rootstock is often collected for medicinal use.
It occurs at elevations of 1000 – 1500 m in moist to wet forests, and even in swampy grassland, across Sub-Saharan Africa;
it is recorded from Guinea, Nigeria, Cameroon, the Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Eswatini, and Angola.
In Kenya its roots are heavily collected, and this often kills the plant.
In 2014, the same company found interest in Mondiawhiteifor its medicinal quality which is endemic to Africa.
This plant, which is endangered, is traditionally used to treat various ailments such as anorexia, stress, bilharzia and sexual dysfunction, as well as for general aches and pains.
The plant is also used as a food flavouring agent due to its vanilla-like odour.
It tastes like a mixture of liquorice and ginger.
Over exploitation is now threatening its very existence and part of the EruDef effort is to get locals to cultivate it.

About Cameroon-

Camroon is a country in west-central Africa.
It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and the Republic of the Congo to the south.
Its coastline lies on the Bight of Biafra, part of the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean.
Due to its strategic position at the crossroads between West Africa and Central Africa, it has been categorized as being in both camps.