Basically, realizing Farmers' Rights means enabling farmers to maintain and develop crop genetic diversity, and recognizing and rewarding them for this indispensable contribution to the global pool of genetic resources and to local and global food security.
This website has been developed as a tool for decision makers, practitioners and others involved in the realization of Farmers’ Rights as they are addressed in the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. It is also an information source for researchers, journalists, and other interested individuals. The website is hosted by the Fridtjof Nansen Institute Norway and is funded by the Research Council of Norway.
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Contribute hereThe United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas (UNDROP) has a comprehensive scope and comprises many more rights than those related to seed and genetic resources. Also, the rights related to seed and genetic resourse are much more far reaching than those provided on Farmers’ Rights in the Plant Treaty. As a declaration, however, this is not a legally binding instrument, and even if the majority of countries supported the declaration, many countries have not. Nevertheless, UNDROP establishes important international norms shared by the majority of states, which may also affect the implementation of Farmers’ Rights under the Plant Treaty.
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is relevant for the realization of Farmers’ Rights for two quite different reasons. On one hand, the Patent Cooperation Treaty under WIPO enables patents related to plants to be granted simultaneously in a large number of countries, which may heavily affect any rights that farmers’ have to save, use, exchange and sell farm-saved seed of the plants affected by such patents. On the other hand, the Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Resources and Folklore (IGC) under WIPO seeks to negotiate one or more international legal instruments to protect traditional knowledge, traditional cultural expressions and genetic resources.
The Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) is particularly relevant for the realization of Farmers’ Rights with respect to its provisions on requirements for national legislation on plant breeders’ rights. Dependent on how such legislation is formulated, it may to various degrees limit farmers practices of saving, using, exchanging and selling farm-saved seed of protected varieties.
The Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) is particularly relevant for the realization of Farmers’ Rights due to its provisions requiring national legislation on patents and plant variety protection. Despite different opinions on how these provisions shall be interpreted, experience shows that there is much flexibility with regard to Farmers’ Rights.
The Convention on Biological Diversity CBD is closely interconnected with the Plant Treaty. Its provisions on traditional knowledge and access and benefit sharing are particularly relevant for the realization of Farmers’ Rights. However, there are different approaches to these issues, dependent on whether the aim is primarily to develop stewardship or ownership. Thus, it is useful to reflect the relevant provisions of the CBD through the Plant Treaty with its provisions and options for realization of Farmers’ Rights.
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