The first meeting of the Ad Hoc Technical Group on Farmers’ Rights (AHTGFR) held from 11 to 14 September 2018 at the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) Headquarters in Rome, Italy.
Following Resolution 7/2017 where the Seventh Session of the Governing Body of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) decided to establish the AHTGFR, the first meeting was convened:
I. To produce an inventory of national measures that may be adopted as well as best practices and lessons learned from the realisation of Farmers’ Rights as set out in Article 9 of the ITPGRFA; and
II. Based on the inventory, to develop options for encouraging, guiding and promoting the realisation of Farmers’ Rights as set out in Article 9 of the ITPGRFA.
The AHTGFR, as decided by the Governing Body of the ITPGRFA, comprises up to five members designated by each FAO region, up to three representatives of farmer organisations, particularly from the centres of origin and crop diversity, up to three other stakeholders, including the seed sector and observers.
Mr Kent Nnadozie (Secretary of the ITPGRFA) opened the AHTGFR, while Ms Svanhild-Isabelle Batta Torheim (Ministry of Agriculture and Food, Norway) and Mr Rakesh Chandra Agrawal (Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Authority, India) were co-chairs.
The AHTGFR discussed three key issues. First, the historical development of farmers’ rights. Second, the national experiences on the implementation of farmers’ rights. Third, the options for encouraging and promoting the realisation of farmers’ rights.
In line with Article 9 of the ITPGRFA, the AHTGFR rightly acknowledged that the responsibility for recognising farmers’ rights rests with national governments, highlighting that a variety of measures, including legal, financial, political and technical, could contribute to achieving this goal. Examples of national measures and experiences presented include those from Canada, Chile, India, Italy and Nepal. See openly accessible presentations from the AHTGFR here. See also Farmers Rights as set out as in Article 9 of the ITPGRFA below:
9.1 The Contracting Parties recognise the enormous contribution that the local and indigenous communities and farmers of all regions of the world, particularly those in the centres of origin and crop diversity, have made and will continue to make for the conservation and development of plant genetic resources which constitute the basis of food and agriculture production throughout the world.
9.2 The Contracting Parties agree that the responsibility for realising Farmers’ Rights, as they relate to plant genetic resources for food and agriculture, rests with national governments. In accordance with their needs and priorities, each Contracting Party should, as appropriate, and subject to its national legislation, take measures to protect and promote Farmers’ Rights, including:
a) protection of traditional knowledge relevant to plant genetic resources for food and agriculture; b) the right to equitably participate in sharing benefits arising from the utilisation of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture; and c) the right to participate in making decisions, at the national level, on matters related to the conservation and sustainable use of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture.
9.3 Nothing in this Article shall be interpreted to limit any rights that farmers have to save, use, exchange and sell farm-saved seed/propagating material, subject to national law and as appropriate.
The second meeting of the AHTGFR is scheduled to hold in May 2019, to continue discussions on the implementation of Article 9 of the ITPGRFA.
