By Olimatou Coker
The Nagoya Protocol/Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) under the Department of Parks and Wildlife Management recently organised a 3 day national stakeholder awareness/consultation on the national environment Acts and the Nagoya Protocol’s implementation in The Gambia.
Held at the NaNA conference hall, the meeting attracts participants from ministries; departments; agencies; civil society organisations; universities and research institutions.
The gathering seeks to propose or identify a number of strategies and activities that are geared towards raising awareness on issues that will influence attitudes and actions towards achieving the Nagoya project objectives.
It availed participants the opportunity to identify strengths, weaknesses and gaps of the 3 main environmental acts/regulations (NEMA, Forestry; and Wildlife and Biodiversity acts) and propose updates.
The meeting was also meant to further enlighten stakeholders on the Nagoya protocol, which aims to support The Gambia to adopt policy measures and mechanisms to meet the provision of access and benefits sharing from the utilisation of genetic resources.
Abubacarr Kujabi, the Project Coordinator of the Nagoya Protocol/ABS, said the objectives of the project, includes providing technical support for the ABS policies, legal and institutional regulatory frameworks for The Gambia, as well as piloting administration and policy measures to implement committee protocols.
“We hope that participants will be able to look at some of those gaps that the project is here to address to make sure that we have policies and regulations that are going to address issues that are not included in the National Environment Management Act; National Biodiversity Strategic Action Plan or the Forestry Acts.”
Ismaila Danso, the Deputy Permanent Secretary (DPS) at the Ministry of Gender and Social Welfare, urged participants to fully engage themselves by asking relevant questions and making suggestions for better understanding of the project.
DPS Danso stated that one of the components of the project is to enhance partnership to improve equitable access and use of genetic resources.
Momodou Lamin Gassama, Director Department of Parks and Wildlife, calls for collective responsibilities in sharing knowledge gained through the consultation meeting.
He highlighted that the key component of Nagoya protocol is for parties to enact laws and regulation that will get access and equitable sharing of benefits that arise from the use of genetic resources.
A participant from the Department of Parks and Wildlife Management Fatou Jarju, said the workshop provided her with a better understanding of the project’s objectives and components.
