FAO International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture Implementation of Farmers’ Rights

This paper was prepared as an Information Submission for the FAO Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture fourth Governing Body, Bali, 14-18 March 2011. It reviews the Treaty provisions on Farmers Rights, the implementation of farmers' rights particularly in Peru, India and China, and research findings on how to effectively implement farmers' rights and the erosion of genetic resources. It finds that progress with implementation of farmers rights has been very limited - even in India, the relevant law does not enable registration of farmers' varieties. It concludes that countries should develop effective national legislation to implement farmers' rights, address the negative impacts of other policies (eg. plant breeders rights) on farmers' rights, support community level initiatives, and take a broad approach based on protection of rights over biocultural heritage.

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