ACCESS AND BENEFIT-SHARING TOOLKIT

The Access and Benefit-Sharing (ABS) Toolkit provides a framework for Southern African communities to protect their Traditional Knowledge and biological resources. It explains the ABS process—where providers and users negotiate access and benefits—and highlights the role of Biocultural Community Protocols in strengthening community bargaining power. The guide details international frameworks like the Nagoya Protocol and South African national laws (NEMBA and BABS Regulations) that mandate permits and Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC). Using Buchu as a primary example, the toolkit discusses the importance of sustainable stewardship and the potential for both monetary and non-monetary benefits, while warning against biopiracy and the limitations of ABS in resolving land rights issues.

• Access and Benefit-sharing (ABS) is a process where providers (communities or individuals holding knowledge or resources) and users (industry, researchers, or organizations) negotiate access to natural and genetic resources and associated Traditional Knowledge in exchange for fair and equitable benefits.
• Benefits derived from ABS can be monetary, such as royalties and profit sharing from commercial products, or non-monetary, including the development of research skills, training, and the sharing of scientific knowledge.
• Traditional Knowledge is collective community property passed through generations and encompasses six aspects: spiritual, subsistence, economic, traditional secret, medicinal, and historic.
• Biocultural Community Protocols (BCPs) are structured tools that allow communities to document their customary rules, rights, and preferences for interacting with outsiders, thereby preparing them for ABS negotiations.
• The Nagoya Protocol is a legally binding international agreement that requires signatory countries, including South Africa, to recognize customary laws and community protocols to ensure transparency and legal certainty in the transfer of genetic resources and benefits.
• In South Africa, the National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act of 2004 (NEMBA) and the Bioprospecting, Access and Benefit Sharing Amendment Regulations of 2015 (BABS Regulations) regulate the use of Indigenous Biological Resources (IBR).
• South African law requires permits for bioprospecting and exporting IBRs, which are granted only if Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) is obtained from the providers and Traditional Knowledge holders.
• The South African government utilizes a Bioprospecting Trust Fund to monitor and manage the payment of benefits from signed benefit-sharing agreements, though communities may establish separate Community Trust Funds for internal decision-making.
• Buchu (Agathosma betulina and Agathosma crenulata) is an aromatic shrub endemic to South Africa, specifically the Western Cape and Eastern Cape, used as a health tonic with anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties.
• The Khoi and San peoples are recognized as the oldest Traditional Knowledge holders regarding the cultivation and use of Buchu in the Western Cape.
• ABS processes can provide non-monetary achievements for communities, such as the formal recognition of their indigenous or customary status, the revitalization of Traditional Knowledge, and improved community organization.
• Significant challenges in ABS include the complexity of knowing legal rights, ensuring that the correct representative decision-making structures are approached for consent, and the risk of biopiracy where knowledge is patented without consent.

APA

Natural Justice (n.d.). ACCESS AND BENEFIT-SHARING TOOLKIT. https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/ABS-toolkit_BUCHU_mailer-1.pdf

Chicago

Natural Justice. ACCESS AND BENEFIT-SHARING TOOLKIT. n.d. https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/ABS-toolkit_BUCHU_mailer-1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Natural Justice |title=ACCESS AND BENEFIT-SHARING TOOLKIT |url=https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/ABS-toolkit_BUCHU_mailer-1.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{naturaljusticendaccess, author = {{Natural Justice}}, title = {{ACCESS AND BENEFIT-SHARING TOOLKIT}}, institution = {Natural Justice}, url = {https://naturaljustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/ABS-toolkit_BUCHU_mailer-1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }