Traditional Knowledge Commercialization - Benefit Sharing

1. Traditional Knowledge Commercialization - Benefit Sharing Y. Venkateswara Rao Dabur Research Foundation

2. Overview  Traditional Knowledge  What can be commercialized?  Why Commercialization?  Commercialization - process of commercialization  Benefit sharing: - What is already existing  What needs to be done?

3. Traditional Knowledge • Traditional Knowledge generally resides in the books and also in people’s mind • Traditional practices can only meet the requirements of limited population • In certain cases valuable knowledge is present in remote areas without being utilized

4. What can be commercialized? • Practices (e.g. Panchakarma) • Knowledge (e.g. may in the form of books) • Treatment practices • Products • - Prepared by Practitioners • - Prepared by Industry

5. Why Commercialization? • To make Traditional Knowledge & its benefits available to large section of the society • To convert “tacit” knowledge to “explicit” knowledge • To be a global player

6. Commercialization • Commercialization to be effective we need to understand • Consumer angle • - needs and demands • Steps involved in product development • How to compete globally • Wedding of new technologies with traditional systems / Processes

7. Commercialization • Consumer angle: • Understand consumer needs and demands • Consumer concerns about commercialization of Traditional Knowledge

10. Commercialization • Steps involved in Product development • Screening of ideas / traditional concepts • Concept testing • Raw material source / Product feasibility • Formulation development and standardization • Product testing / Market Research • Clinical study • Regulatory requirements • Launching

11. Commercialization • Concept testing: • To understand the consumer needs & demands • To test the concept feasibility • Also to understand the consumer concerns

12. Commercialization Value addition: Raw material - Identification of raw material - Raw material source - Standardization of Raw material - Development of appropriate dosage forms - Assessment of its stability - Development of quality parameters in the finished product - Generating efficacy & safety data Finished Product

13. Commercialization • Product testing: • It is important • To understand product characteristics • To understand product preference • Enable to improve product

14. Commercialization • Clinical studies: • Establishment of traditional claims through modern scientific methods • Ensure the efficacy of the product • To convince medical fraternity / consumer • To meet the regulatory requirement

15. Commercialization • Market Launching: • Success rate of products (e.g.. Chyawanprash) • Market competition • Threat from copying / spurious products

16. Benefit Sharing • Various forms of benefit sharing: • Dissemination of traditional knowledge • Improve the quality of life & Social awareness • Providing better health benefits to a common man • Better procurement price • Royalty sharing

17. Benefit sharing • Improve the quality of life: • Case Study: cultivation of medicinal plants initiative taken by Dabur Nepal • Objectives of the study: • To conserve and propagate the threatened & valuable medicinal plants for socio-economic development • To develop an infrastructure for the management, marketing and distribution of threatened & valuable medicinal plants through coordinating the individual enterprises, organizations and industries involved in production, use and trading of medicinal plants

18. Benefit sharing - Case Study • Study design: • Semi-structured in-depth interviews • Assessment of children, number of visits to the doctor or hospital, perceived health benefits

19. Benefit sharing - case study • Summary of findings: • The level of awareness about sustainable usage is very encouraging • Improvement in the house-hold income • Improvement in the personal and family health • More financial security • Improved nutritional status and education of children

20. Benefit sharing - Procurement • Procurement of Amla • Procurement from small scale industries • Girijan societies - honey procurement Tribals M.P Govt. Initiative Trader/Industry Forest Corporation

21. Benefit sharing - clinical studies • Clinical studies: • Establishment of traditional claims through modern scientific studies e.g.: Chyawanprash • Dissemination of clinical knowledge to the public

22. Benefit sharing - health benefits • Improvement in the quality of products • Improve the quality of life • Development of new molecules like “Taxol” through Eco-friendly technology

23. Benefit sharing - royalty sharing •  Arogyapacha Case: • Initial lead obtained from Kani tribes • TBGRI developed the technology • Commercialized to a pharmaceutical firm •  Problems in the agreement:

24. What needs to be done? • Incentives to cultivation of medicinal plants • Promoting cultivation and sustainable usage - promoting industry • Definite Government policy towards royalty sharing • Increasing awareness among rural population about raw material procurement and distribution

25. Thanks!