EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Government of Uganda’s policy and legal requirement is that access and export of the country’s genetic resources be regulated. In line with section 44 of the National Environment Act Cap 153, which requires the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) to issue guidelines and prescribe measuresfor sustainable management and utilisation of Uganda’s genetic resources, the National Environment (Access to Genetic Resources and Benefit Sharing) Regulations, 2005 was put in place. Regulation 8(c) gives NEMA the duty to develop guidelines for access to, and export of genetic resources. These Guidelines therefore lay out the conditions under which this shall be done. It is expected that they will provide the relevant stakeholders in a clear manner, simplified procedures and conditions guiding that access. The overall objective of the Guidelines 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. Access to the genetic resources, or parts thereof, naturally occurring or naturalised, bred, or intended for commercial purposes within Uganda, or for export, is prohibited under the country’s policies and laws unless an Access Permit has been obtained from the Uganda National Council for Science and Technology (UNCST). Before one is given an Access Permit to access genetic resources in Uganda, the person intending to access the genetic resources must obtain a Prior Informed Consent (PIC) and an Accessory Agreement with the resource owners, enter into and sign a Material Transfer Agreement (MTA) with the Lead Agency responsible for management of the resources and carry out environmental impact assessment where found necessary. The EIA must be carried in accordance with the EIA Regulations of 1998. PIC is adopted as a key component of the contractual process of getting access to Uganda’s genetic resources. The requirement for PIC applies to all individuals, companies and associations wishing to access genetic resources in Uganda. The supplier of the resources is required to fully appreciate the nature of the resource being sought, its potential or actual value and potential use before consenting to the access. Uganda recognises and protects the rights of local communities to benefit from their traditional knowledge and to receive compensation for any use of such knowledge. Holders of traditional knowledge have the right to ask for benefits from the knowledge and information have provided with respect to a genetic resource that a person would like to access. They have the right to extend or refuse their approval for such access. As such, application of the principle of PIC to the rights of local communities is mandatory. An MTA is an agreement between a LA and a collector, setting out the terms under which genetic resources can be transferred from one party to another. It clearly states the rights and obligations of any party who may have ownership of, or authority over genetic resources to which access is being sought. Its enables the Government of Uganda to keep track of the material accessed and helps in keeping records of material collected from Uganda in any given period of time. There are some activities that lead to access of the country’s genetic resources which are exempted from the requirement of an Access Permit. These include exchange of genetic resources done by the local community amongst themselves and for their own consumption; exchange certified to be purely for food or other consumptive purposes as prescribed in the relevant laws, genetic resources in transit through Uganda, genetic resources derived from plant breeders, human genetic resources and where use is intended for approved research for educational purposes by Ugandan institutions. This exempted use must not have commercial motivations. If the use is changed to commercial, then the procedure for obtaining an Access Permit must be followed. Once a person has been given permission to access genetic resources in Uganda, the applicant is required to indicate whether the genetic resource/material is for export or whether it will be used within Uganda. Each time an applicant with a valid Access Permit wishes to export genetic material they have to obtain an Export Permit from the CITES Management Authority in the Ministry of Guidelines for Access to Genetic Resources and Benefits Sharing  iii