KUCHING: Five communities — the Bidayuhs of Kampung Kiding, Padawan; the Lun Bawangs of Long Telingan and Long Kerabangan, Lawas; and the Kelabits of Pa’Ukat and Pa’Lungan — signed the Benefit Sharing Agreements (BSA) under the Sarawak Biodiversity Centre (SBC) Ordinance, 1997.
SBC also becomes the first in Malaysia to implement the Nagoya Protocol on access and benefit sharing, a major landmark for governance of genetic and traditional knowledge, with benefit sharing for its indigenous communities through the sustainable use of their biodiversity.
“Malaysia is one of the mega-biodiversity countries in the world with Borneo being one of the hotspots.
“The Sarawak government has worked steadfastly to put in place access and benefit sharing provisions in the Sarawak Biodiversity Centre Ordinance, 1997,” said Sarawak Biodiversity Council chairman Tan Sri Datuk Amar Wilson Baya Dandot today.
Wilson also said that it was a good governance marker for genetic resources and traditional knowledge through this benefit sharing.
“In addition, this aligns with Sarawak’s vision to move beyond traditional industries and explore alternative economic growth resource through science that fully taps into Sarawak’s rich biological landscape.”
“The official signing of the BSAs presents new avenues for wealth generation through alternative socio-economic activities for these five communities,” he added.
Meanwhile, SBC chief executive officer Dr Yeo Tiong Chia said the strong association between traditional knowledge and ethno-botanical research offered new opportunities, especially in making a strong case for Sarawak to protect its rich biological resources.
“Due to the rapid growth of the global wellness industry which is worth trillions of dollars and larger than the pharmaceutical industry, we strongly believe that Sarawak’s biological resources can bring us more in future.”
He also raised the ongoing concerns on biodiversity and indigenous traditional knowledge which will continue to be susceptible to bio-piracy in many parts of the world.
He added that to prevent from misappropriation of traditional knowledge and create a mutual trust essential for long-term research, SBC’s flagship programme on the documentation of traditional knowledge aims at empowering the indigenous communities through greater recognition of their rights and access to their knowledge.
The Nagoya Protocol is an international treaty under the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD). The best practice adopted in the BSAs presents three-fold benefits – ensure fair and equitable sharing of monetary and non-monetary benefits arising from the utilisation of biological resources and associated traditional knowledge; promote the importance of biodiversity conversion; as well as recognition and respect to the communities’ rights to its biological resources and associated traditional knowledge.
Among the products that have been successfully produced from the Litsea Cubeba plants are body wash, shampoo, soap sniff essentials, air freshener and essential oils under the LitSara Project.
