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| Photo:Lesle Jansen/Natural Justice |
On 16 March 2016 Natural Justice, together with the National Khoi-San Council
(NKSC) in partnership with the South African Department of Environmental
Affairs (DEA) held a community consultation with the Khoi-San Rooibos farming community from
Wupperthal in the Cederberg region. The consultation concerned the issue of access
to indigenous biological resources by third parties and the benefit sharing
thereof in accordance with the Convention
on Biological Diversity and the more recent
Nagoya Protocol.
The NKSC and the South African San Council has been struggling for the
last three years to get the South African Rooibos Industry to comply with their
benefit sharing obligations under Nagoya
Protocol (CBD) and the South African Regulations on Bioprospecting, Access and
Benefit-sharing.
The meeting was hosted by the Wupperthal Cooperative and DEA. At the
consultation meeting, Mr Cecil Le Fleur, the chairperson of the NKSC, as well
as Natural Justice, gave inputs on the negotiation process with the Rooibos
Industry. The DEA then presented a recent Traditional
Knowledge Report, commissioned by them, which confirms the Khoi-San as the Traditional
Knowledge holders of the Rooibos plant.
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| Photo:Lesle Jansen/Natural Justice |
During 2014 the NKSC made a national decision that the Khoi-San
historical Rooibos farming
communities should be the main beneficiaries in a benefit-sharing agreement
with the Rooibos Industry. What the NKSC deems important is the recognition of
the Khoi and San as the traditional knowledge holders to the uses of
Rooibos. The Cederburg belt region
communities, such as Wupperthal is now forming part of the negotiating team with
the NKSC and the SA San Council.
The Wupperthal community gave their support for negotiations to continue
with the Rooibos Industry. Both the DEA and the NKSC will continue to hold
legal empowerment meetings with the Khoi-San Rooibos farming communities in this region.
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