Ecuador

The draft ABS regulation was submitted in December 2018 to the President of the Republic and it is pending approval by the government (Annex 1 Ecuador). However, even without the new “ABS Regulation”, in Ecuador there is a national ABS Regime, based in a transition scheme agreed between the institutions that have competences in the matter, such as the Ministry of the Environment and Water (MAAE, according to the process of merger between the Ministry of the Environment – MAE and the National Water Secretariat – Senagua), Senescyt, Senadi and Inabio. One of the strengthens of the ABS system in Ecuador is this strong interagency alliance on ABS. 

On November 19, 2019, a workshop on the constitutional analysis of Art. 408 of the 2008 Constitution of Ecuador was held, regarding the participation of the State in the distribution of benefits from access to genetic resources. There is a report on the analysis carried out and the roadmap to follow for the interpretation of the second paragraph of art. 408 by the Constitutional Court that establishes a minimum percentage of benefit-sharing with the State of 50% (Annex 3 Ecuador).

The regulation to the Environment Code was adopted on 21st May 2019 and published on 12th June 2019 as Executive Decree 752. In addition, technical guidelines for the access and management of information at the National Bank of Genetic Resources and germplasm banks and technical criteria for the conservation of biodiversity (Annex 4 Ecuador), to be considered when granting research permits and access to genetic resources, have been developed. 

Capacity Development

Increase by X% in the capacities of national and state competent authorities and related agencies to develop, implement, and enforce national ABS domestic legislation, administrative or policy measures for ABS – including a CHM, as measured by the UNDP ABS Capacity Development Scorecard:

• 78% (level at 23 February 2021, end of the project in Ecuador) (Annex 10 Ecuador). 

National Policy Measures

Number of national policy measures adopted for protecting TK, innovations and practices, and customary uses of biological and genetic resources:

• To date, 220 new registrations have been made in the SENADI CCTT Voluntary Deposit. There is also a “Gathering of base information and generation of a proposal for the implementation of public policy related to traditional knowledge and ancestral knowledge associated with genetic resources” (http://gaceta.propiedadintelectual.gob.ec:8180/Gacetas/649/#p=1). 

CHM Development

Number of countries with a national ABS CHM, an improved web page with relevant ABS information, or a national biodiversity CHM with ABS-related information:

• The ABS-CH Module has been fully structured and currently has an interface with the Biodiversity Information System (SUIA). The electronic portal to process access requests and grant permits is already available (https://www.ambiente.gob.ec/acceso-a-los-recursos-geneticos/). This is a provisional system until Senescyt assumes the full competence on ABS. In that sense the project supported the design of the ABS Regime management model, technical specifications of its Virtual Single Window (electronic requests) for Biodiversity Research and its institutional strengthening plan in the ABS Regime, in Ecuador”. At the moment, the corresponding second phase IT development at Senescyt is not funded, although there are institutional contacts to mobilize funds from other funders.