The type of contractual agreement that many hope would be encouraged by the biod
ID: 454980 • Letter: T
Question
The type of contractual agreement that many hope would be encouraged by the biodiversity treaty is exemplified by the recent agreement between Merck & Company, the world's largest pharmaceutical company, and the Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad in Costa Rica. The agreement, announced on 19 September 1991, is a two-year "collaborative research agreement" under which Merck agreed to pay INBio a sum of $1 million for all of the plant, insect, and soil samples the institute could collect in addition to a percentage of the royalties from any drugs that Merck develops from samples provided by INBio. The royalties, which were estimated to be in the range of one to three percent but were not made known to the public, will be split equally between INBio and the Costa Rican Ministry of Natural Resources.
Was this deal ethically justifiable? Why or why not? Who, if anyone, owns the many species found in nature? Do they belong to the people who own the land or water on or in which they are found?
Explanation / Answer
The agreement that Merck and INBio is ethically justifiable. Merck and INBio had an agreement in which INBio would collect soil, plant, and insect samples and give them to Merck for evaluation for the prospects of creating medicine. Merck and INBio had an collaborative research agreement to protect the natural resources. The royalties that INBio receives from Merck will be used to support the conservation of Costa Rica's biodiversity.
The many species found in nature belongs to the water or in which they are found. As per the rights, agreement, the royalties received to be used to preserve the biodiversity.
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