Reviews the success with which the South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC) countries have legislated regarding access to biological resources, specifically their levels of compliance with the Convention on Biological Diversity 1992. Outlines the biological resources of each of the SAARC countries, illustrating them with a table. Summarises the approaches taken by countries in other regions of the world to access to genetic resources. Describes the ways, in the author's opinion, in which a regional access regime could benefit SAARC countries and in which it could be achieved.