Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations  
International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture

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    The Inventory

    This online version of the Inventory presents, for each measure, the title and a brief description with information on implementing organization(s), start year, objectives, core elements, key outcomes, and, if applicable, lessons learned. It thus allows users to quickly identify those examples that may be of interest to them. A hyperlink to the original submission is provided, which includes additional information, such as on the history and context of the presented measure, challenges encountered, or target groups reached. In this way, users can get a more comprehensive idea of the measure in question and the specific context for which it was developed.
     
    To facilitate navigation, the Inventory is subdivided into eleven categories. Measures or practices that fall under more than one category are listed under each one that applies. Furthermore, information is provided on the type(s) of measures that are typically involved, such as technical, administrative, legal, and/or others, and on the relevant sub-article of Article 9 that is addressed. Additional search options allow searching by country, region, free text and keyword.
     
     
     
     
     
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    Number of records: 233

    66) Community Biodiversity Register

    Establishment of Community Biodiversity Register (CBR) was piloted during the Global Agrobiodiversity Project, starting in 1998. It was implemented by Local Initiatives for Biodiversity, Research and Development (LI-BIRD) in collaboration with the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC) and Bioversity International. CBR can be used as ‘information databases’ on biodiversity and associated knowledge, where¬by communities gain better understanding of their biological assets; for developing community biodiversity management plans, identifying PGRFA for conservation and sources of seed and planting material; or for protecting traditional knowledge against appropriation. LI-BIRD follows eight steps for developing a CBR: (1) selecting the community; (2) informing the community on the rationale and objectives; (3) strengthening institutional capacity; (4) defining a specific focus and initial requirements for data collection; (5) documenting, compiling and validating information; (6) analysing and sharing information; (7) designing and implementing conservation and development plans; and (8) registering and linking with a national repository. Participating farmers realized that many local landraces are vulnerable to genetic erosion and eventual loss; Community Seed Banks were established in some areas to address this issue. Information collected should be used for planning of community-based biodiversity management activities, rather than limiting the approach to documentation alone.

    Category: 4.Catalogues, registries and other forms of documentation of PGRFA and protection of traditional knowledge

    Type of measure/practice: Technical

    67) Knowledge sharing and exchange of experiences between and among farming communities on the management and utilization of crops

    Between 2001 and 2005, the National Institute of Agrarian Innovation (INIA), together with several governmental and non-governmental organizations, facilitated knowledge sharing and exchange of experiences between and among 472 custodian farmers from 69 communities, comprising 10 administrative regions participating in an in situ conservation project of INIA. The objective was to share experiences and exchange knowledge systems related to the different management practices and important utilization of 11 priority native crops in order to enhance knowledge and prevent its ‘erosion’. The knowledge sharing and exchange of experiences took place at INIA Agricultural Experiment Stations located in 10 administrative regions, selected sites for the in situ conservation project of INIA, also identified as ‘micro-centres of genetic diversity’. These regions are, characterized by a high diversity of native crops and their crop wild relatives, in addition to cultural wealth, including in terms of traditional knowledge and customary management practices relating to PGRFA. As an outcome, INIA compiled an inventory of native crops and registry of traditional knowledge and reported 8,867 usages. The described measure is an effective way to re-valorize traditional knowledge for use by the farmers themselves and for in situ conservation activities, in line with the objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the ITPGRFA.

    Category: 4.Catalogues, registries and other forms of documentation of PGRFA and protection of traditional knowledge

    Type of measure/practice: Technical

    68) Agrobiodiversity fairs

    Between 2001 and 2005, the National Institute of Agrarian Innovation (INIA), together with several governmental and non-governmental organizations, organized a series of agrobiodiversity fairs. . The main objectives were to document the diversity of native crops and typical dishes made from them; and to facilitate the exchange of seeds among the participating farmers. The agrobiodiversity fairs were carried out in coordination with the local government authorities featuring ‘Seed Fairs’ and ‘Foods/Dishes Festival Contest’, taking advantage of the Patron Saint Festivals celebrated in the participating villages. The winners received prizes such as organic fertilizers, farm tools or kitchen utensils. In addition, the winner participated in the national agrobiodiversity fair held in Lima, which had a great impact on the urban population of the Peruvian capital, seeing for the first time the great diversity of native crops conserved by custodian farmers. Also, one farmer, having a leading role in the in situ conservation project, had the chance to participate in the first ‘Terra Madre’ Conference, a network of food communities, held in Italy in 2004. As a result of these Agrobiodiversity Fairs, INIA compiled an inventory of native crop varieties, 3475 varieties were documented according to their local names.

    Category: 4.Catalogues, registries and other forms of documentation of PGRFA and protection of traditional knowledge

    Type of measure/practice: Technical; Others

    69) General regime on Access and Benefit-sharing (ABS)

    In order to implement the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Nagoya Protocol, the French law on Biodiversity (n°2016-1087) has modified of the Environmental Code – Article L. 412-3 and establish¬es rules on access to genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge and sharing of benefits arising from their use. In addition, the EU Regulation No 511/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 April 2014 establishes compliance measures under the Nagoya Protocol. The Ministry of Ecology is the competent authority receiving any application for accession to traditional knowl¬edge associated with genetic resources. French law also applies directly to the five ‘overseas’ departments (Martinique, Guadeloupe, French Guyana, Mayotte, La Reunion) and to Saint-Martin and Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon; and partially to some other territories, including New Caledonia and French Polynesia. Currently, processes are underway to establish procedures for consultation with ‘communities of inhabitants’ or ‘resident communities’, which can be any community of inhabitants who traditionally derive their livelihood from the natural environment and whose way of life is of interest for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity. Benefit-sharing can include measures for the preservation of traditional knowledge related to PGRFA of the communities concerned, with their prior informed consent.

    Category: 10.Legal measures for the implementation of Farmers’ Rights, such as legislative measures related to PGRFA.

    Type of measure/practice: Administrative; Legal

    70) Participatory plant breeding

    In 1997, Local Initiatives for Biodiversity, Research and Development (LI-BIRD), in collaboration with researchers of Bangor University (UK), the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC) and Bioversity International, implemented Participatory Plant Breeding (PPB) to develop farmer-preferred new varieties while maintaining useful traits of local varieties. Core components of PPB include: (1) identification of community, crop and farmers’ needs; (2) selection of breeding material; (3) crossing selected parents; (4) selecting in segregating materials in farmers’ fields; (5) quality and quantitative assessments by farmers and breeders, including post-harvest traits; (6) development of local seed supply systems; and (7) registration/release from the national system. Key outcomes were the development of new rice and maize varieties using local varieties as breeding parents. Kachorwa Community Seed Banks produce around one ton of newly developed rice variety seeds every year, which are sold and distributed locally. The rice variety registration proposal has been submitted to the National Seed Board. The maize variety is already registered in the national system and a community-based seed producer group is producing and marketing seeds of the newly developed variety. Lessons learned include the importance of involving farmers in setting breeding goals and strengthening their institutions.

    Category: 7.Participatory approaches to research on PGRFA, including characterization and evaluation, participatory plant breeding and variety selection

    Type of measure/practice: Technical