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Summary Highlights: 18-22 February 2019

Highlights for Friday, 22 February 2019

On Friday morning, CGRFA 17 delegates attended the launch of the report on the State of the World’s Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture (SOW-BFA). FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva highlighted the wealth of information the report brings together, noting it covers a gap in knowledge and sets a baseline for the future.

Bernard Lehmann, Swiss Secretary of State for Agriculture, stressed the need to motivate farmers to strengthen co-existence of biodiversity and agriculture. Ram Kumari Chaudhary, State Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Development, Nepal, stressed that no country is self-sufficient in food species.

Naoko Ishii, GEF Chief Executive Officer and Chairperson, outlined the GEF's program on food and land use restoration focusing on comprehensive land use planning, a landscape approach, and value chain management. Normita Ignacio, Executive Director, SEARICE, Philippines, asked delegates to use the report to inspire real action, noting that “smallholders feed the world, so we must put their interests before all others.”

Via video message, CBD Executive Secretary Cristiana Paşca Palmer encouraged FAO and the Commission to continue their active involvement in the development of the post-2020 biodiversity framework using the SOW-BFA report. Phil Hogan, EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, said the report will help policy makers, stakeholders and citizens better understand the linkages between biodiversity and agriculture.

In the afternoon, delegates adopted the CGRFA 17 report.

René Castro-Salazar, Assistant Director General, Climate, Biodiversity, Land and Water Management, lauded the launch of the SOW-BFA report expressing his confidence that decisions taken during the session would allow “turning words into deeds.” CGRFA Secretary Irene Hoffmann urged delegates to “distribute, reiterate and retweet” the messages of the SOW-BFA to give it real impact.

CGRFA 17 Chair Wigmore underlined the importance of collaboration between the Commission and other biodiversity-related agreements in building the post 2020 biodiversity framework and closed the session at 7:05 pm.

Highlights for Thursday, 21 February 2019

On Thursday, CGRFA 17 delegates met in plenary to continue deliberations on micro-organism and invertebrate genetic resources (MIGR), the Strategic Plan for the CGRFA, and cooperation with international instruments and organizations. Highlights of the deliberations included:

• A discussion on future work on sustainable use and conservation of MIGR;
• Discussions on the draft revised Strategic Plan for the CGRFA (2018-2027); and
• A discussion on inputs received from international instruments and organizations in the Commission’s work, including the State of the World’s Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture (SOW-BFA).

The Expert Group on MIGR met to discuss MIGR functional groups to be addressed in forthcoming CGRFA sessions.

Delegates agreed to hold CGRFA 18 from 1 to 5 March 2021 at FAO Headquarters in Rome, Italy. François Pythoud (Switzerland) was elected as Chair of CGRFA 18.

Highlights for Wednesday, 20 February 2019

On Wednesday, delegates continued their deliberations on plant, forest, animal and micro-organism and invertebrate genetic resources for food and agriculture (GRFA).

Highlights of the day included:

• A debate on the implications of seed policies and regulations for on-farm conservation;
• A discussion on a proposed guide for the implementation of genebank standards for plant GRFA;
• A review of the implementation the Global Plan of Action on Forest Genetic Resources (GPA-FGR);
• An update on the preparation of the second report on the State of the World’s Animal Genetic Resources (SOW-AnGR);
• Discussions on guidelines for sustainable livestock value chains and methods for valuing ecosystem services provided by livestock; and
• An initial discussion on future work on micro-organisms and invertebrate GRFA.

In contact groups, delegates also continued discussions on follow-up to the report on the State of the World’s Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture (SOW-BFA), access and benefit-sharing (ABS) and “digital sequence information” (DSI) on GRFA.

Highlights for Tuesday, 19 February 2019

On Tuesday, delegates completed their deliberations on nutrition and genetic resources for food and agriculture (GRFA) and discussed the following issues:

• The report on the State of the World’s Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture, including needs and possible actions in response to the report;
• Aquatic GRFA, including the report on the State of the World’s Aquatic GRFA and options for follow up to the report; and
• Plant GRFA, including review of implementation of the second Global Plan of Action on plant GRFA.

Delegates also decided to continue deliberations on follow up to the State of the World’s Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture report and access and benefit-sharing in informal groups, and to revisit a draft decision on “digital sequence information” (DSI) later in the week.

Highlights for Monday, 18 February 2019

The seventeenth session of the Commission on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (CGRFA 17) opened today at the Headquarters of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Rome, Italy.

Delegates discussed the following issues:

• The Commission’s work in raising awareness of the role of genetic resources for food and agriculture (GRFA) for food security and nutrition and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs);
• Explanatory notes of distinctive features of GRFA use in different sub-sectors intended to complement the Elements on ABS in GRFA sub-sectors; and
• The role of GRFA in mitigation of and adaptation to climate change.

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  View of the dais during the opening and welcome

  

  Kent Nnadozie, Secretary, International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGR)

  

  Maria Helena Semedo, Deputy Director-General, Climate and Natural Resources, FAO

  

  

  Irene Hoffmann, CGRFA Secretary, FAO

  

  David Cooper, CBD Deputy Executive Secretary