1. PART I: INTRODUCTION The issue of conservation of biological diversity in Uganda constitutes one of today’s greatest challenges, for the following main reasons: a) the concern about biodiversity stemming largely from an increased awareness and scientific agreement that the current rate of species extinction is extremely high compared to the natural average rate; b) as the new biotechnologies greatly enhance the potential utility areas of the country’s genetic resources, the economic interests linked to these resources are soaring; The combined effect of these two trends is thus a greatly enhanced interest in property rights and controlled access to genetic resources. 1.1. Objective and Scope of the Guidelines It is the policy and legal requirement of the Government of Uganda that access and export of the country’s genetic resources be regulated. The overall objective of the Guidelines for Access to Genetic Resources and Benefit Sharing in Uganda, therefore, is to provide for simple arrangements and procedures including measures for accessing biological and genetic resources of Uganda, their products and derivatives for scientific research, commercial and any other purposes connected therewith and to ensure equitable sharing of the benefits accruing therefrom in accordance with the National Environment (Access to Genetic Resources and Benefit Sharing) Regulations, 2005. These Guidelines lay out the conditions under which access to Uganda’s genetic resources shall be granted and the sharing of benefits arising out of the utilisation of genetic resources shall be qualified as fair and equitable. Access to the genetic resources, or parts thereof, naturally occurring or naturalised, genetic resources bred, or intended for commercial purposes within Uganda, or for export, whether in-situ or ex-situ conditions is prohibited under the country’s policies and laws unless an Access Permit has been obtained from the Competent Authority. In this context, the Competent Authority is the Uganda National Council for Science and Technology (UNCST). It is expected that these Guidelines for Access to Genetic Resources and Benefit Sharing in Uganda will assist the relevant stakeholders including government, the private sector, NGOs, local communities, academic and research institutions, foreign institutions and independent researchers to access Uganda’s genetic resources for academic, research, commercial and other uses in a clear and simplified manner with easily understood procedures and conditions guiding that access. 1.2. Interpretation The terms used in these Guidelines have the same meaning as is given to them under the CBD; CITES; the National Environment Act Cap 153; and the National Environment (Access to Genetic Resources and Benefit Sharing) Regulations, 2005. Some of them have been adapted to suit the national conditions. A glossary is provided for those terms that are specifically used in these Guidelines. 1.3. International Legislative Background Until the early 1980s, conservation of biological diversity, whether national or international, was still focused on wild species of plants and animals. An important shift came when questions of access to, and control over, plant genetic resources were raised in the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) by governments of the developing world. Since then, the controversial issue of property rights and access to genetic resources has been dealt with in several international arenas, most importantly the CBD, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) under the World Trade Organisation and the African Model Law. Uganda signed the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) on June 12, 1992 and ratified it on September 8, 1993. One of the objectives of the CBD as set out in its Article 1 is the “fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilisation of genetic resources, including by appropriate access to genetic resources and by appropriate transfer of relevant technologies, taking Guidelines for Access to Genetic Resources and Benefits Sharing  1