India has submitted its First National Report on the implementation of the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilisation. The report covers the period from 1 November 2017 to 31 December 2025 and reflects India’s progress in biodiversity governance, benefit-sharing and compliance under the global framework.
What the Report Covers
The report was prepared by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in collaboration with the National Biodiversity Authority. It was submitted to the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity under Article 29 of the Protocol on monitoring and reporting. India had earlier submitted an interim national report in November 2017.
India’s ABS Framework
India’s access and benefit-sharing system operates under the Biological Diversity Act, 2002. It is supported by the Biological Diversity Rules, 2024 and the ABS Regulations, 2025. The framework works through a three-tier structure:
- National Biodiversity Authority at the national level.
- State Biodiversity Boards and Union Territory Biodiversity Councils at the state and UT level.
- Biodiversity Management Committees at the local level.
More than 2,76,653 Biodiversity Management Committees have been established across the country.
Key Implementation Outcomes
During the reporting period, India issued 12,830 ABS approvals. These included 5,913 approvals by the National Biodiversity Authority for research, bio-survey, commercial utilisation, transfer of research results, intellectual property rights and third-party transfers. State Biodiversity Boards and Union Territory Biodiversity Councils issued 6,917 approvals for commercial utilisation by Indian entities. India also published 3,556 Internationally Recognised Certificates of Compliance on the ABS Clearing-House. This accounts for over 60% of the global total and shows India’s strong compliance record.
Benefits, Monitoring and Capacity Building
The ABS framework generated ₹216.31 crore through NBA approvals, of which ₹139.69 crore was disbursed to benefit claimers such as Biodiversity Management Committees, local communities, farmers and traditional knowledge holders. Another ₹51.96 crore was generated through approvals by State Biodiversity Boards and Union Territory Biodiversity Councils. India also received 41 declarations for foreign-sourced biological resources and associated traditional knowledge. In addition, 2,56,393 individuals were trained through 3,724 workshops and programmes, supported by more than 600 capacity-building initiatives.
Last Modified: April 29, 2026