Hon Deputy Speaker, hon Minister and Deputy Minister, hon members, historically in South Africa, a lack of bioprospecting legislation and associated regulations have permitted almost unconstrained access to South African bioresources, sometimes in destructively excessive quantities, for innovative value addition and offshore financial benefits. The consequence has been that the country as a whole, including traditional knowledge holding communities and bioresource providers, has not benefited equitably from the commercial and other gains derived from local bioresources gains.
The above scenario shifted in May 1997, with the drafting of the White Paper on Conservation and Sustainable Use of South Africa's Biological Diversity. The policy outlined the necessity for establishing legislation and institutional structures to control access to South Africa's indigenous genetic resources.
The National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act, Act 10 of 2004 has sought to give effect to ratified international agreements, binding on the country, which relate to biodiversity. It legislates for, in part, the management and conservation of biological diversity, the use of indigenous biological resources, and a sustainable, fair and equitable sharing among stakeholders of benefits arising from bioprospecting involving indigenous biological resources, coinciding closely with the cornerstone of the Convention on Biological Diversity, CBD.
Of significance throughout this process is that the Department of Water and Environmental Affairs has been constant in ensuring that the fundamentals of the White Paper, and the 2012 amendments to the Biodiversity Act, reflect the following: Compliance in relation to evolving international agreements; the concept of benefit sharing for the nation; provision for the use of indigenous biological resources in a sustainable manner; and provision for, among other things, the protection of species listed as threatened or protected, so as to ensure that the utilisation of biodiversity is managed in an ecologically sustainable way.
A particularly interesting aspect for me in relation to the international agreements is the way in which the Nagoya Protocol skilfully shifts from the global to national and local levels. Whereas the Nagoya Protocol is mainly concerned with benefit sharing between the states, it includes two potential safeguards for protecting the rights of indigenous people and local communities which link economic, social and ecological objectives, while supporting marginalised communities as they defend their rights to land and resources.
The Bill has to provide the department with a legal mandate to ensure proper regulation of bioprospecting involving indigenous genetic and biological resources, as well as to ensure the application of Chapter 6 to genetic resources.
In conclusion, there is a need to do constant monitoring of South Africa's biodiversity and life support systems, which are increasingly threatened by our consumption-driven lifestyles, high population growth, pollution and inefficient technologies. Ironically, the people who feel the impact of this degradation are likely to be the rural and marginalised communities who depend more directly on natural systems for food, water, medicines and energy. It would be interesting to oversee this process of the way in which national and provincial departments mandated with environmental management of biodiversity will extend a particularly significant approach of public participation, as well as giving a voice to communities through community protocol. The ANC supports this Bill. I thank you. [Applause.]