SouthViews No. 311, 22 July 2026
Grappling with Biofraud: Decision 16/2 Disenfranchises UNCBD Parties of Justifiable Rents for Genetic Resources
By Joseph Henry Vogel and Pallavi Mishra
A multilateral benefit-sharing mechanism for digital sequence information on genetic resources (DSI) is under development by the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD). Benefits are slated to be negligible. Biopiracy will continue to thrive in the digital realm unless an effective mechanism is established. The global South should place on record at COP17, scheduled for October 2026, that DSI-distinct-from-genetic-resources is not only wrong but fraudulent. Like-minded mega-diverse Parties should propose that a “fair and equitable” benefit be interpreted as analogous to the economic rent that inheres in intellectual property. Rent is the difference in profits that industry enjoys before a patent expires. For a Global Multilateral Benefit-sharing Mechanism to be efficient, the use of de-materialized genetic resources, inter alia “DSI”, must be disclosed in patent applications (Yes/No), with tracing for successful commercialisations.