Biological and traditional resources are plundered from the countries of origin mainly by pharmaceutical and biotechnological companies, in a process that also includes the unauthorized exploitation of living and plant resources, when the vast majority of the robbery is carried out by western commercial companies
According to international agreements, there is legal protection for inventions, technological developments, medicines, etc., similar protection is available for cultural and natural resources, i.e. plants, animals, etc., with the basis being the Convention for the Protection of Biological Diversity (CBD). The patent laws are supposed To prevent the production or copying of resources by those who do not pay royalties to the inventor/developer/source. The agreements/laws are also supposed to protect natural resources such as living plants, etc. that serve our needs in a variety of uses. Is it true?
It turns out that the implementation of the laws and agreements depends on the goodwill of the parties and when one of the parties is weak, as in the case of a "developing country", then the other party ignores the agreements, laws, regulations and moral principles.
A report whose authors called it "Out of Africa: Mysteries of Access and Benefit Sharing" was submitted to a number of African and American organizations that deal with the protection of the environment and the preservation of rights and resources such as: Edmonds Institute of the United State African Center for Biosafety.
The report refers to biological and traditional resources that are looted from the countries of origin mainly by drug manufacturing and biotechnological companies, there is also unauthorized exploitation of living and plant resources when the vast majority of the looting is carried out by western commercial companies.
The companies "obtain" information and materials in illegal and immoral ways and by using the information and materials earn a huge fortune, according to law and morality the source of the information and materials should receive royalties, that is, African countries should share in the profits of the companies...
Examples: Europe's largest pharmaceutical company, Bayer Bayer, developed a drug for diabetics, the drug that helps patients by preventing the absorption of sugar into the blood, is based on a bacterium that was discovered and stolen from a water reservoir in central Kenya. The revenue from the production of the drug was about 400 million dollars a year, the royalties to Kenya... In 1992, "extreme" extremophiles were stolen from a hot spring in the African depression in Kenya, from which an enzyme was developed that is used in the textile industry to create the faded color in jeans, as well as in the production of detergents, the use, the production, and ironically The patent registration…. By two companies in the USA, Procter & Gamble and Genencor Internationala. "Genencor" revenue from the patent marketer is about 3.5 billion dollars. Royalties!
The Usamboro Mountains are a picturesque mountain chain in Tanzania. On the slopes of the mountains grows a unique climber, Impatiens usambarensis. Researchers at a biotechnological company based in Switzerland - Sygenta stole seeds and cuttings and developed an ornamental plant that is in demand all over the world. According to them, the development is the result of the multiplication of two species of the climber... and it turns out that they were right To develop the plant into a commercial product from hybrids developing two species: Impatiens usambarensis and Impatiens walleriana but what... both species were stolen from Tanzania The sale of the ornamental plants in 2004 brought in about 150 million dollars! The Tanzanians got….. 0.
In 1970, British researchers, employees of the pharmaceutical company S.R. SR Pharma in a bacterium called Microbacterium vaccae. The bacterium was found in water bodies in central Uganda and from it drugs against viral infections were developed.
We are all familiar with the widespread use of aloe vera products for medicine, cosmetics, etc., the aloe plant originates in Africa and its use stems from/is learned from tribal tradition across the continent and despite this, the inhabitants of the continent do not have copyright... this is the case with dozens of plants, fish, and others.
Israel also appears in the report. Researchers from Tel Aviv University work in an international research team on the shores of Kenya in collecting biological materials/finds while ignoring the Convention for the Protection of Biological Diversity and ignoring Kenya's right to property on its shores!
South of the Sahara grows a plant which is given the popular name "bitter leaf" Vernonia amygdalina and is a source of medicine for the treatment of cancers. Who receives royalties for the use? J
From DRAP to Egypt, from Morocco to Kenya, resources are being stolen without recompense to the residents who are considered the world's oppressed poor! And then "philanthropic" organizations come and donate help to the hungry and the poor in the Black Continent. Perhaps, if all... or even a small part of the looting of resources and the theft of products, knowledge and tradition were properly rewarded, there would be no need for alms
Lake Bogoria. The enzyme that is produced from the microorganisms that live in it is also used in cleaning agents, to remove stubborn stains
Your distressed jeans were created by a lake in Kenya
by Mark Lacey
Lake Bogoria is the source of a special - and valuable - material that sustains the fashion industry well in the West. Now the Kenyan government is demanding a share of the profits
New York Times
The inhabitants who once lived around Lake Bogoria in Kenya attributed mystical properties to its salty waters. They believed that the water of the lake, which in some areas is cool and in others almost boiling, can cure many ailments - from skin diseases to mental distress. In recent years, other, no less miraculous, uses for this water have been discovered. And so, the ancient lake suddenly plays a role in the modern world. He is a player in the fashion industry and the subject of legal battles over the huge profits that can be made from him.
The frayed jeans we all know probably owe their perfect cut and soft touch to Lake Bogoria. To be precise, these properties are related to an enzyme isolated from a lake-dwelling microorganism. Another enzyme extracted from creatures living in Kenya's salt lakes, such as Bogoria, is an important ingredient in cleaning products sold worldwide. This enzyme removes stubborn stains and helps wash cotton fabrics.
The two enzymes are at the center of a bitter legal dispute. The company that developed the commercial uses of microorganisms and their products boasts of its scientific achievements, but the Kenyan authorities claim that this is "biopiracy".
Developing countries are currently trying to influence companies to fairly distribute the profits they make from their biological treasures, whether it's a fungus found in giraffe droppings, an antibiotic drug discovered in a termite mound, or an appetite suppressant extracted from a cactus. The Convention on the Conservation of Biological Diversity, adopted at the Earth Summit held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, obliges countries to share in a just manner part of the profits and rewards received from products derived from biological resources. But organizations operating in the field claim that the articles of the treaty are often ignored. "It's a freestyle grappling," researcher Jay McGown wrote in a report recently published by the Edmonds Institute and the African Center for Biosafety.
Scientists who collected samples from Lake Bogoria and Lake Nakuru to the south of it claim that they did so in 1992, while the convention entered into force in December 2003. Extremophiles - organisms that live in extreme environmental conditions - were found in the samples, and these underwent various experiments. The samples were later bought by a California company called Ginencor International, registered as a patent, and after being cloned, marketed them to textile companies and manufacturers of cleaning products.
Ginencor, which was acquired in 2005 and became a division of Danisco, claims that it acted honestly and in good faith. According to the company, the samples were provided to it by a company in the Netherlands, which was a partner in an academic research expedition led by Dr. William D. Grant, a microbiologist from the University of Leicester in Great Britain. Jinankor claims that the Kenyan authorities granted that delegation all the necessary licenses and that a microbiologist from Kenyatta University, Dr. Wanjiro Mwatha, even joined the delegation.
The company did not try to hide the origin of the microorganisms it used. Her report for 2000 even states: "To find enzymes that thrive in an alkaline environment - like your laundry water - and enzymes that give your jeans a 'soft' feel and a polished look, we looked for them - yes, that's right - in the soda lakes of Kenya."
In 1994, Kenyan government officials learned that the company was making profits from materials removed from the lake and they began a struggle to obtain compensation, which continues to this day. They say that no real license was ever given to take the microorganisms out of the lake and sell them.
Dr. Mwatha said in an interview that for the purpose of her doctoral thesis she received a government permit to conduct research in Bogoria and other lakes. According to her, Dr. Grant was her supervisor when she studied in Britain and he accompanied her on a research trip to Kenya. However, Mwata claimed that she did not know that Grant was connected to any commercial company and that she did not know if her samples were used commercially. "Personally, I have never had anything to do with a commercial company," she noted. "What really upsets me is that if they found something in my samples I should have known about it. Not for economic reasons, but for scientific reasons."
In contrast, the Kenyan authorities do focus on the financial aspects. A spokeswoman for the Kenya Wildlife Service, Connie Maina, said the service was "in contact with the company". Ginancourt said: "We welcome an open dialogue with the Kenyan authorities and look forward to a positive solution." The company stated that the revenues from the enzymes brought from Kenya's lakes are not large - less than 10 million dollars - and that it donated computers and sampling equipment to the microbiology department at Kenyatta University.
But Kenyan government officials say they believe the profits from the enzymes are much greater. And while Ginencourt claims that one of its main business partners, "Procter & Gamble", did not use enzymes from Kenya in its products, the Kenyans suspect that the opposite is true.
The question of how Bogoria's microorganisms found their way to the world market adds to the ambiguity, much like the lake itself. Despite the ongoing debates surrounding it, the lake continues to be a source of great pride for Kenyans and many students visit it on school trips. In one such visit, held not long ago, the teacher Benson Kirito told his students from the city of Muranga: "All over the world, the water of this lake is used to make jeans look worn. You didn't know that, did you? So what do you think about that?"
