Pastoralists’ rights to animal genetic resources were the focus of a paper presented at the Third International Conference on Biodiversity and Organic Agriculture in Nairobi in September 2004.

The paper was written jointly by Intermediate Technology Development Group veterinarian Jacob Wanyama and the League for Pastoral Peoples. Dr Wanyama presented the paper during a workshop on 25 September 2004 on biodiversity and animal husbandry. The workshop organizer was LPP member Anita Idel, Anita.Idel@t-online.de, of the organization Project Management Animal Health & Agrobiodiversity.

The conference, held on 24-26 September, focused on the role of organic agriculture in protecting biodiversity. It was organized by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM). For details of the programme see www.ifoam.org