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OPEN-ENDED WORKING GROUP ON GPA

The WG finished its work during a late night session on Wednesday. AUSTRALIA on behalf of a Contact Group on FR, offered text with lengthy qualifiers to "realizing" FR. With no real agreement, delegates decided to forward original bracketed text on "the concept of Farmers' Rights" to the Plenary. The CHAIR then proposed that the section of the GPA on Cost Estimates and Sources of Funding be deleted, and referred to the Third Extraordinary Session of the CGRFA. EGYPT expressed concern, but the CHAIR's proposal was adopted. The CHAIR's suggestion to delete summary paragraphs containing Major Elements and Recommendations was accepted, given lack of time to renegotiate the text. SWEDEN then proposed deleting the section on Structure and Organization. After the CHAIR's humorous anecdote about "fresh fish", this was withdrawn.