What is the real relationship between the CBD Working Group on Access and Benefit Sharing and WIPO and the WTO?

The document analyzes the substantive and political linkages between the CBD's Working Group on Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) and the Geneva-based WIPO and WTO. It focuses on two primary areas of overlap: the requirements for disclosure of origin of genetic resources in patent applications and the protection of traditional knowledge. The author suggests that the ABS Working Group's decision to meet in Geneva in January 2008 may be an attempt to leverage the momentum of WIPO and the WTO or to reclaim space on environmental and indigenous issues. The piece aims to outline the formal mandate of the Working Group regarding these organizations and assess the actual nature of their participation in CBD processes.

• The CBD's Working Group on Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) has achieved some success with the Bonn Guidelines on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of the Benefits arising from their Utilization, but faces challenges in negotiating an international regime on Access and Benefit Sharing.
• There are substantive and political connections between the CBD, WIPO, and the WTO concerning the protection of traditional knowledge and the requirement to disclose the origin of genetic resources within patent applications.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (2007). What is the real relationship between the CBD Working Group on Access and Benefit Sharing and WIPO and the WTO? https://www.ciel.org/reports/fourth-quarter-2007-what-is-the-real-relationship-between-the-cbd-working-group-on-access-and-benefit-sharing-and-wipo-and-the-wto-2/

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. What is the real relationship between the CBD Working Group on Access and Benefit Sharing and WIPO and the WTO? 2007. https://www.ciel.org/reports/fourth-quarter-2007-what-is-the-real-relationship-between-the-cbd-working-group-on-access-and-benefit-sharing-and-wipo-and-the-wto-2/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=What is the real relationship between the CBD Working Group on Access and Benefit Sharing and WIPO and the WTO? |date=1 December 2007 |url=https://www.ciel.org/reports/fourth-quarter-2007-what-is-the-real-relationship-between-the-cbd-working-group-on-access-and-benefit-sharing-and-wipo-and-the-wto-2/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforinternationalenvironmentallaw2007what, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{What is the real relationship between the CBD Working Group on Access and Benefit Sharing and WIPO and the WTO?}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2007}, month = dec, url = {https://www.ciel.org/reports/fourth-quarter-2007-what-is-the-real-relationship-between-the-cbd-working-group-on-access-and-benefit-sharing-and-wipo-and-the-wto-2/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }