ABSTRACT
The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has three objectives: protecting biological diversity, the sustainable use of its components, and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits generated by the exploitation of genetic resources. The fair and equitable sharing of benefits raises institutional, political, and intellectual challenges of great complexity. Moran reports on a trial project in Nigeria in the 1990s that sought to establish a viable arrangement for benefit-sharing in bioprospecting. If the CBD has included the principle of equitable compensation among its objectives, it is primarily because there is a commercial value attached to the use of certain resources. The quest for "equity" primarily concerns the principle of respect for basic human rights. If the CBD has included the principle of equitable compensation among its objectives, it is primarily because there is a commercial value attached to the use of certain resources.
