1. Negotiations

International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture – ITPGRFA

The conservation and sustainable use of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture are key to ensuring the world will produce enough food to feed its growing population in the future. To this end, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) began seven years of negotiations that resulted in the adoption of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) in 2001.

The treaty targets the conservation and sustainable use of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture (PGRFA), and fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of their use, in harmony with the Convention on Biological Diversity. The treaty establishes a Multilateral System for facilitated access to a specified list of PGRFA, including 35 crop genera and 29 forage species (contained in Annex I), and institutionalizes monetary and nonmonetary benefit-sharing from the use of these resources in the areas of commercialization, information exchange, technology transfer, and capacity building.

Events

Showing 1 - 10 of 13 results

10th Session of the ITPGRFA Governing Body

Collaboration between the Treaty and relevant international instruments and organizations came into the spotlight as the Governing Body worked through its agenda, including enhancing the Treaty’s Multilateral System of access and benefit-sharing, farmers’ rights, and the impact of technological developments, including digital sequence information (DSI) on genetic resources.
Event 20 November 2023 - 24 November 2023

9th Session of the ITPGRFA Governing Body

Meeting at a crucial moment for the future of the Treaty, parties relaunched negotiations on measures to enhance the functioning of the Treaty’s Multilateral System of access and benefit-sharing. Parties further addressed farmers’ rights and issues related to “digital sequence information/genetic sequence data” (data derived from genetic resources that is often shared freely online) that could undermine the benefit-sharing regime.
Event 19 September 2022 - 24 September 2022

1st Special Session of the ITPGRFA Governing Body

Delegates adopted the interim budget and called for all parties to contribute to the core budget to ensure all Treaty operations continue until the ninth session of the Governing Body can convene in 2022.
Event 7 December 2021

8th Session of the Governing Body of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture

Parties to the Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture met to address a range of policy, implementation, cooperation, and administrative matters of relevance to the Treaty and its Multilateral System (MLS) of access and benefit-sharing, but they were unable to adopt a package of measures to enhance the functioning of the MLS.
Event 11 November 2019 - 16 November 2019

Resumed 9th Meeting of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group to Enhance the Functioning of the Multilateral System of Access and Benefit-sharing (OWG-EFMLS-9) of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture

The Working Group was unable to bridge positions between the developed and the developing world. Deep principled divergences remained, in particular on benefit-sharing payments from use of genetic sequence data. Co-Chairs Hans Hoogeveen (Netherlands) and Javad Mozafari (Iran) will hold informal consultations immediately prior to the Governing Body (GB) session to be held from 11-16 November 2019 in a final attempt to reach consensus.
Event 24 October 2019 - 26 October 2019

8th Meeting of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group to Enhance the Functioning of the Multilateral System of Access and Benefit-sharing (OWG-EFMLS-8) of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA)

The eighth meeting of the Working Group did not achieve any concrete outcomes in relation to specific clauses in the SMTA. In addition, questions related to digital sequence information (DSI) and a possible expansion of the MLS remain deeply divisive. However, several participants welcomed the constructive spirit and open discussion that provided opportunities for mutual learning and clear procedural steps allowing for informed deliberations at its next meeting in June 2019.
Event 10 October 2018 - 12 October 2018