NATURAL JUSTICE is providing assistance to the South African government to implement ABS-related programmes.
NATURAL JUSTICE is collaborating with the Department of Science and Technology (DST) towards the implementation of the ‘Farmer to Pharma Grand Challenge’ (FTP). The aim of the Grand Challenge is to “…catapult South Africa to a leading position in Biotechnology and pharmaceuticals by harnessing the country’s biodiversity, indigenous knowledge and scientific expertise.” NATURAL JUSTICE was invited to the First National Bio-prospecting Stakeholders Meeting in July 2009 to present on mechanisms to integrate communities into the design and implementation of bio-prospecting permit applications.
Since this workshop, NATURAL JUSTICE has continued to work closely with DST and its Farmer to Pharma program. In October 2009, NATURAL JUSTICE facilitated a DST delegation visit to the provinces of Mpumalanga and Limpopo to explore possible pilot regions for the implementation of initiatives in this field.
We are also helping to facilitate meetings of the Hoodia Working Group (HWG), a multi-stakeholder group with a common interest in the Hoodia market. The HWG meets regularly to discuss the latest developments and to forge strategies for increasing market access. For more information about the HWG’s work, please subscribe to Hoodia News by sending an email to hoodia-news(at)naturaljustice.org.za.
We continue to look for ways to assist national governments, local agencies, funders, and NGOs to develop and implement international and national laws relating to communities and the environment.
For up-to-date information about our work, please visit our blog: http://natural-justice.blogspot.com/ and Flickr photostream: http://www.flickr.com/photos/naturaljustice/sets/
