69. The representative of Colombia said that his country was one that was megabiodiverse i.e. rich in biological resources. These resources and the associated traditional knowledge were viable and high potential alternatives for resolving national and international problems in areas such as health, food security, indigenous and rural production, and environment. Traditional knowledge associated with biodiversity was a fundamental part of wealth and depended largely on these resources. When biological resources and associated traditional knowledge were used for profit, it was important to ensure that this was done in accordance with the intentions of the communities who owned them, and that the resulting profits were properly shared. This meant that it was essential to ensure close linkage between the regulation of access and the regulation of use. There had been much discussion in the Council about the best mechanism for avoiding misappropriation of such resources and associated knowledge. For a variety of reasons that had been discussed time and again, he said that his delegation, along with many other developing country Members, considered that current mechanisms for protection against biopiracy, such as national legislation, contracts and databases, were insufficient or unsuitable. In Colombia's view, the WTO needed to tackle the issue of revision of international patent law so as to halt misappropriation of biodiversity. He reiterated that it was important for the TRIPS Agreement to contribute to achieving the objectives of the CBD by maintaining mutual support, synergies and the integrity of both instruments. Hence, Colombia supported the disclosure proposal contained in document IP/C/W/474 circulated in 2006 which had the backing of a large group of Members. He said that, during the period 2006 2008, Members had taken a constructive and enthusiastic part in the technical discussions held on the subject and provided abundant information and explanations for the reasoning behind their proposal. His delegation was discouraged by the fact that some Members lacked the decisiveness to adopt a common stance to address an interest that was largely shared by the membership as a whole. Some Members had even concluded free trade agreements with Colombia that contained obligations relating to disclosure of origin or the source of genetic resources. His delegation would continue to plead in favour of fair treatment of the protection of biodiversity and associated traditional knowledge.
