WIPO: New Treaty on genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge

New Treaty on genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge

After more than 20 years of negotiations, the consensus reached on May 24 in Geneva (Switzerland) by the diplomatic conference of the World Intellectual Property Organization has made it possible to sign a new International Treaty that regulates genetic resources and the traditional knowledge associated with them, and their protection against abuses by third parties through Intellectual Property rights.

International law already protected genetic resources and traditional knowledge before the signing of this Treaty. In the face of "biopiracy", the 2010 Nagoya Protocol established certain rules, whereby "users" of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge are obliged to obtain permission and enter into agreements with the "providers" of such resources and the holders of traditional knowledge, in order to share the results of their research and development activities. However, although this Protocol establishes general lines of good intentions, it does not cover Intellectual Property rights at any time.