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

    191) Community seed multiplication of farmer varieties in Zambia

    Community Technology Development Trust (CTDT) is a private NGO registered in Zimbabwe, formed in 1993, in response to the livelihoods challenges facing the poor rural communities and households in Zimbabwe and regionally. It has expanded its office in Zambia, implementing projects on farmer-managed seed system since 2011 in partnership with Zambia Agriculture Research Institute, and the farming communities of Chikankata, Rufunsa and Shibuyunji. The farmer-managed seed system project was focused on: (1) strengthening the conservation of local crop genetic diversity; (2) improving household food and nutrition security using local crop diversity; (3) improving the capacity of local communities to adapt to climate change using local biodiversity resources; and (4) advocating for amending seed policies to promote the realization of Farmers’ Rights. The project have targeted about 8,000 farmers in rural communities in the three districts, of which about 60% are women. Through this project, the availability of local seed crops in the target areas where seed of sorghum, pearl millet, finger millet and cowpea are being multiplied by the community and distributed through the established community seed banks. Capacity development of farmers to better adapt to climate change and enhance their resiliency were carried out, thereby promoting enhance awareness on the importance of local crops and traditional knowledge.

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

    Type of measure/practice: Technical

    192) Safeguarding Farmers’ Rights in Swiss intellectual property law

    In Switzerland, national measures concerning intellectual property rights that are relevant in the context of Article 9.3 of the ITPGRFA include the Federal Law of 20 March 1975 on the Protection of New Varieties (status as of 1 January 2011) and the Federal Act of 25 June 1954 on Patents for Inventions (Patents Act, status as of 1 January 2019). The so-called ‘farmers’ privilege’, allowing farmers to save and use seed and propagation materials from their own harvest, including of protected varieties, was introduced into both Acts in a similar way in 2008. Farmers who wish to make use of the farmers’ privilege do not have to pay any remuneration to the holder of the right, provided that they have previously acquired original seed or planting material placed on the market by the holder of the plant breeders’ right or patent, or with his consent. So far, the Federal Council has determined 23 plant species to which the farmers’ privilege shall apply. Furthermore, Article 9.1 f. of the Patent Act protects farmers from excessive claims in cases where the patented genetic information was bred into his/her planting material without his/her knowledge or against his/her will (e.g. by wind-pollination).

    Category: 11.Other measures / practices

    Type of measure/practice: Legal

    193) Balancing Plant Variety Protection (PVP) and Farmers' Rights

    Intellectual property rights protecting plant varieties are relevant regarding farmers' rights to save, use, exchange and sell farm-saved seeds. Norway became a member of UPOV in 1993, based on the 1978 Act of the UPOV Convention. Even though the 1991 Act was adopted by many other countries at that time, Norway chose to adhere to the 1978 Act. In 2004, the government proposed changes to the Plant Breeders' Rights Act and to join the 1991 Act of the UPOV Convention. However, this proposal spurred public debate. After the election in 2005, the new government withdrew the proposed changes in the PVP legislation on the grounds that they limited Farmers' Rights. At the same time, the breeding industry was promised to receive stronger government support for the development of varieties that are suitable to Norwegian conditions and adapted to climate change. Based on this agreement, farmers in Norway could continue to save and use farm-saved seed and propagating material of protected varieties without paying any remuneration to the holder of the plant variety protection right.

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

    Type of measure/practice: Legal

    194) Genetic Resources Consortium

    The Genetic Resource Consortium was started in 2013 under the coordination of the Indonesian Agency of Agricultural Research and Development (IAARD) of the Indonesian Ministry of Agriculture and in collaboration with Agricultural Technology Assessment Institute (AIAT). The Consortium promoted a program to develop an inventory of local varieties/landraces in the entire country comprising of 34 provinces. Around 34,000 of local varieties/landraces were inventoried, recorded, and some of them were collected and conserved in the ex-situ conservation facilities., Varieties that may have economic value or the potential to be developed/improved are registered for PVP (around 350 varieties) and some of them are released as local superior varieties. This achievement was made possible with the involvement of local farmers as the main actors in the participatory varietal selection (PVS), and as the main beneficiaries of the varieties produced. In the PVS approach, the farmer has more decision in selecting the specific traits of the varieties to be developed. Because of their accumulated traditional knowledge that is passed down from generation to generation, farmers accelerated the selection of varieties that are highly adaptive to the local agro-ecological conditions. The great collaboration and strong networking among the central government, local government, researchers, and the farmer/community were the key to the success of the program.

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

    Type of measure/practice: Technical; Administrative; Others

    195) Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) initiative

    Chile is one of the six pilot countries of the FAO- Global Environment Facility (GEF) funded global project on conservation and sustainable management of Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS), an initiative launched in 2002. After project approval, a discussion between 2007 and 2009, led by Ministry of Agriculture, regarding GIAHS conservation activities for Chiloé Archipelago follows. These discussions finally led to the designation of the Chiloé Archipelago in Chile as a GIAHS in 2011. The objectives of GIAHS initiative in Chile include (1) to support the conservation and sustainable use of agrobiodiversity, its associated cultural and ancestral knowledge, and the goods and services it provides; (2) to develop and implement market strategies that support agrobiodiversity conservation, know-how and sustainable uses while improving local rural livelihoods; and (3) to incorporate conservation principles and agrobiodiversity valuation considerations into public-sector policies and programs. Activities relating to this initiative include capacity and awareness development, community seed banks, value-chain development and other value-creating and cultural activities (e.g. development of tourism) as well as participatory research. Lessons learned include that the sustainability of such initiatives can be enhanced by establishing governance structures that facilitate articulation of the different public and private actors; action plans further contribute to the sustainability.

    Category: 1.Recognition of local and indigenous communities’, farmers’ contributions to conservation and sustainable use of PGRFA, such as awards and recognition of custodian/guardian farmers

    Type of measure/practice: Technical; Administrative