Overview
The African Group has been the strongest advocate of a binding, Party-governed mechanism. During the negotiations it called for a legally binding system aligned with Article 10 of the Nagoya Protocol, a 1% levy on the retail value of DSI-derived products, and a centralised DSI database under the CBD Clearing-House Mechanism with public availability based on prior informed consent. At COP16 it helped define the mechanism’s scope and limited the effect of Cali Fund certificates to the year of contribution. At SBI-7 it sought clearer governance of the Steering Committee, scientific and technical validation of the study on entity thresholds and rates, and recognition of scientific and technical knowledge as non-monetary benefits. It contested the Fund’s standard MoU with the UN Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office as concluded without consulting the COP, insisting that the Fund must not be donor-driven and that its rules must be written by Parties.
Goals
- Bring the Fund’s MoU and Steering Committee under the authority of the COP
- Move towards binding benefit-sharing with stronger contribution rules
- Make DSI available subject to prior informed consent, with stronger database governance
- Secure non-monetary benefits, including capacity-building and technology transfer