Beyond Patents: The Cultural Life of Native Healing and the Limitations of the Patent System as a Protective Mechanism for Indigenous Knowledge on the Medicinal Uses of Plants

Authors

Ikechi MgbeojiFollow

Keywords

biopiracy, Indigenous knowledge systems, intellectual property

Abstract

The question that this paper seeks to tackle is whether in the contest of allegations of biopiracy and in the search for effective mechanisms for the protection of indigenous knowledge of the medicinal uses of plants possessed by traditional healers of southern Nigeria, there is any role for the patent regime. Given the popularity of alternative forms of health care, this question is of importance in contemporary discourse.

Recommended Citation

Ikechi Mgbeoji, "Beyond Patents: The Cultural Life of Native Healing and the Limitations of the Patent System as a Protective Mechanism for Indigenous Knowledge on the Medicinal Uses of Plants" (2006) 5:1 CJLT.