5 June 2011: The first meeting of the Open-ended Ad Hoc Intergovernmental Committee for the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization (ABS) opened on 5 June 2011, to elect its co-Chair and address other organizational matters.

The meeting elected Janet Lowe (New Zealand) to co-Chair the Committee, alongside Fernando Casas (Colombia). Janet Lowe replaces former co-Chair Timothy Hodges (Canada). The Committee’s substantive work begins in Montreal, Canada, on 6 June 2011 and will continue until 10 June 2011. The meeting was preceded by a capacity-building workshop on ABS, held from 4-5 June 2011.

The Intergovernmental Committee was established to undertake the preparations necessary for the first meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Nagoya Protocol on ABS. At its first meeting, the Committee is expected to consider: the modalities of operation of the ABS Clearing-house; measures to assist in capacity building, capacity development and strengthening of human and institutional capacities in developing countries; measures to raise awareness of the importance of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge; and cooperative procedures and institutional mechanisms to promote compliance with the Protocol and address cases of non-compliance. [IISD RS Coverage of the Meeting] [Documents from Capacity-Building Workshop]