Today, the German Bundestag transposed the Nagoya Protocol to the Convention on Biological Diversity into German law. Federal Environment Minister Hendricks said: "The Nagoya Protocol will help us fight against the illegal utilization of genetic resources from animals and plants. This is important for nature conservation, particularly in developing countries". The Protocol contains rules regarding access to genetic resources and their utilization and the sharing of benefits arising from their utilization.
The Nagoya Protocol is also another positive result of the German CBD Presidency from 2008 to 2010. It was at the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in Bonn, under the chairmanship of the Federal Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel, that the course was set for an international ban on biopiracy. The international community subsequently adopted the Nagoya Protocol at the next Conference of the Parties to CBD in 2010. The Protocol lays down rules for research and development on animals, plants and other living organisms from other parts of the world. There is to be a fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources by users and the country of origin. It is particularly important that developing countries also profit economically from nature conservation.
The Nagoya Protocol entered into force on 12 October 2014. So far, it has been ratified by 68 countries and the EU. With the two acts adopted today, the German Bundestag has paved the way for Germany's accession to the Protocol: In future the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation will monitor the compliance of users of genetic resources in Germany with the relevant rules and regulations concerning access and benefit sharing. In addition, German patent law will be amended to make it possible for patent applications to be checked in future for the use of biological material from other countries and, if applicable, whether the biological material has been purchased legally.