Gabon implements new regulations for Iboga exploitation and traditional knowledge
via Gabon Review2 min read
Gabon is tightening control over all activities related to Iboga, a strategic national heritage. The Ministry of Youth, Sports, Cultural Outreach and Arts, responsible for Associative Life, announced on June 8, 2026, that all activities involving this plant and its associated traditional knowledge now require prior authorization from the Ministry of Culture. This measure follows a decree issued on May 22, 2026, which regulates the access, use, exploitation, research, processing, and commercialization of Iboga and its derivatives. According to Minister Paul Ulrich Kessany, authorization will only be granted after a favorable opinion from a newly established interministerial technical commission. The new regulations apply to all individuals and legal entities, both Gabonese and foreign, involved in the Iboga sector. It also covers activities conducted outside Gabon that involve Iboga or its associated traditional Gabonese knowledge. This initiative aims to protect the resource from uncontrolled exploitation and the appropriation of ancestral knowledge without compensation for the communities holding this knowledge. Iboga, considered a sacred plant in several Gabonese spiritual traditions, particularly the Bwiti rite, has garnered increasing international interest for its cultural uses and scientific research into its properties. The government intends to exercise stricter control over the entire Iboga value chain, from access to commercialization, including research and process
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