There was a workshop for the developing an ABS policy of Palau on Feb. 3, 2015 at Koror, Palau hosted by the Ministry of Natural Resources, Environment and Tourism (MNRET) of Palau. The overall objective of this workshop was to develop ABS capacity of Palau, to map the rights and obligation regarding Palau’s genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge, to review relevant legislation and draft ABS rules.
In this workshop, they drafted administrative measures or procedural steps for Palau ABS as;
1. An applicant who wants to engage in bioprospecting in Palau must submit an ‘Application to Bioprospect’ along with the necessary fees and all necessary information to the office of Palau’s ABS National Focal Point (NFP).
2. NFP will submit the Application to the Palau’s Bioprospecting Committee which is consisting of the NFP and representatives of relevant agencies, states or holders of traditional knowledges.
3. The Bioprospecting Committee will review the application within six weeks of its submission and they will ask for more information, provide a bioprospecting permit or reject the application with reason.
4. After initial exploratory stage of bioprospecting, the bioprospector can choose to either stop bioprospecting or enter into an ABS agreement.
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