sustainable development 20 years on from the ... - José Eli da Veiga

119
Box II.5
CONVENTIONS ON BIODIVERSITY AND PROTECTED SPECIES
The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat (Ramsar Convention),
adopted in 1971, established rules to address international concerns over wetlands as habitats for migratory waterfowl.
Only two <strong>years</strong> later, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)
was adopted in response to concerns about illegal international trade that was decimating biodiversity and threatened
the survival of a number of animals and plants. In 1979, the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of
Wild Animals (CMS) was adopted. In 1992, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was the first to consider
biodiversity holistically, as including all the forms of life —genes, ecosystems and species— that form the world’s
ecological infrastructure and provide vital services, with a focus on regulating access to biodiversity. These four
conventions, together with the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture and the
Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (World Heritage Convention), make
up the set of multilateral agreements related to biodiversity economics and protection.
The major goals of the CBD are to conserve biological diversity through the <strong>sustainable</strong> use of the components
of biological diversity and to ensure fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the use of genetic resources. Also,
the CBD deals with people and their role in terms of reliance on and protection of biodiversity. With particular regard to
women, the preamble to the CBD highlights the “vital role that women play in the conservation and <strong>sustainable</strong> use of
biological diversity” and affirms the “need for the full participation of women at all levels of policy-making” (CBD,
1992). In addition, a CBD subsidiary body acknowledged the knowledge, practices and gender roles of women in food
production (CBD, 1996). In line with the commitments made under the CBD, all countries in the region have produced
national inventories and strategies and 26 countries have submitted their fourth national report.
The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to the Convention on Biological Diversity is an international
agreement governing international trade in living modified organisms (LMOs) resulting from modern
biotechnology. The Protocol was adopted on 29 January <strong>20</strong>00 and entered into force on 11 September <strong>20</strong>03. A total
of 28 countries in the region have signed the Protocol. In the knowledge that biotechnology can contribute to human
welfare, the Protocol adopts a precautionary approach (by invoking principle 15 of the Rio Declaration) to ensure
the conservation and <strong>sustainable</strong> use of biological diversity in the face of possible risks posed by living modified
organisms. The Protocol guarantees the transfer of information to the purchasing Parties to enable them to come to a
decision prior to approving the importation of such organisms into their country. It establishes a Biosafety Clearing
House to assist countries in implementing the Protocol.
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 was adopted in Nagoya, Japan, in October
<strong>20</strong>10. The objective of this Protocol is to further the third goal of the Convention on Biological Diversity by the fair
and equitable sharing of economic benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources, including by appropriate
access to genetic resources and by appropriate transfer of relevant technologies, taking into account all rights over
those resources and to technologies, and by appropriate funding, thereby contributing to the conservation of
biological diversity and the <strong>sustainable</strong> use of its components.
Countries that ratify the Nagoya Protocol assume obligations in three main areas: access to genetic
resources; compliance with national policies and laws on access; and fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising
from the use of genetic resources. These three main economic obligations also apply to traditional knowledge of
genetic resources in situations where local communities have provided access. In this context, countries must take
measures to ensure the prior informed consent of these communities.
Within the region, the Caribbean has been particularly active in protecting its marine environment. In 1983
it adopted the Convention for the Protection and Development of the Marine Environment in the Wider Caribbean
Region (Cartagena Convention), which is supplemented by three Protocols (the Protocol Concerning Cooperation in
Combating Oil Spills in the Wider Caribbean Region, adopted in 1983; the Protocol Concerning Specially Protected
Areas and Wildlife (SPAW) in the Wider Caribbean Region, adopted in 1990; and the Protocol Concerning
Pollution from Land-Based Sources and Activities, adopted in 1999). The Convention provides a legal framework
for regional cooperation and national actions in the Wider Caribbean region.
Source: Prepared on the basis of the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, 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, Montreal, <strong>20</strong>11, [online] www.cbd.int/abs/doc/protocol/nagoya-protocol-en.pdf; Convention for the
Protection and Development of the Marine Environment in the Wider Caribbean Region [online] http://cep.unep.org/
cartagena-convention; and official websites of the Conventions mentioned.