Literature on access and benefit-sharing relevant for Farmers' Rights
Andersen, R. (2022). Policy Brief. Enhancing the functioning of the Multilateral System of Access and Benefit-Sharing under the Plant Treaty. Results from an international survey.
The present survey report explores the options for resuming negotiations on enhancing the functioning of the MLS, in the hope that the results may help Contracting Parties in taking stock and assessing next steps.
Andersen, R. (2022). Report: Enhancing the functioning of the multilateral system of access and benefit sharing under the ITPGRFA. Results from an international survey.
This survey explores options for resuming negotiations on enhancing the functioning of the Multilateral System of Access and Benefit-Sharing (MLS) under the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) and is targeted at negotiators and observers in this context. Ninety-five individuals and groups from different regions and stakeholder groups responded to the survey, almost all with experience from delegations or as observers at relevant meetings. The respondents provided their reflections on topics such as whether there is a need to resume negotiations; if so, for what purposes; what the elements of a functioning MLS could be, how the difficult questions of ‘digital sequence information’ (DSI) and expanding the list of crops covered by the MLS could be handled in this context; major stumbling blocks for negotiations; and how, more precisely, negotiation could possibly be resumed. Many respondents made use of opportunities to write free texts and provided insightful suggestions. Studying these proposals may also be useful in finding a way forward.
FAO. (2021). The Multilateral System of Access and Benefit-sharing – Module IV
FAO. (2021). The Multilateral System of Access and Benefit-sharing – Module IV. Rome.
Download the pdf here (PDF, 19MB).
The fourth educational module on the International Treaty focuses on the Multilateral System functions provides an overview of the legal and historical perspectives that lead to the development of the Multilateral System and the list of Annex I crops. It also illustrates the core concepts and articles of Section IV of the International Treaty. The first two lessons are aimed at a broad target learner group, especially at learners that are new to the Multilateral System. Lessons three and four contain practical elements related to the day-to-day operations and may be of interest to those exchanging material and involved in the planning and implementation of the Multilateral System at the national level. All lessons provide an extensive list of resources and references for further reading and learning. It has been designed to contribute to supporting the implementation of the International Treaty and also the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework.
Adebola, T. (2019). Access and benefit sharing, farmers’ rights and plant breeders’ rights: reflections on the African Model Law.
This article discusses the protection of new plant varieties in Africa and the African Model Law through the lens of its key protagonist, Professor Johnson Ekpere. It urges African countries to consult the African Model Law as a guide when designing plant variety protection systems. It is hoped that by offering Professor Ekpere’s biography, personal experiences, and first-hand account of the African Model Law, African countries may better understand the Model Law as a significant response to the small-scale-farmer- and farming-community-centred agricultural systems on the continent and embrace its continued relevance.
Gauchan, D., Joshi, B. K., & Bhandari, B. (2018). Farmers’ rights and access and benefit sharing mechanisms in community seed banks in Nepal
Farmers’ Rights and access and benefit sharing (ABS) are important and interlinked issues in the conservation and sustainable use of agrobiodiversity. This chapter aims to assess the current status and policy gaps of implementing farmers’ rights and ABS mechanisms with regard to community seed banks and the conservation and sustainable use of agrobiodiversity in Nepal. It also explores potential options and strategies to promote community seed banks as local legitimate institutions for formalizing ABS mechanisms and realizing farmers’ rights. The information for this study is generated and synthesized from a review of relevant policies and programs, key informant interviews and focus group discussions with community seed bank members and stakeholder consultation meetings. Recently, community seed banks (CSBs) are emerging as important community-based institutions for local level access and exchange of genetic resources, strengthening local seed system, realizing farmers’ rights and safeguarding agrobiodiversity.
They are also gradually emerging as a local grass-roots institution for crop improvement, variety maintenance and registration of local varieties for increased benefit sharing with farmers and local communities. A well-functioning CSB adopts community biodiversity management (CBM) approaches and tools, such as community biodiversity register, diversity field school, diversity fair, community biodiversity management fund, participatory plant breeding, value addition and marketing to promote local access, exchange, use and conserve crop genetic resources using customary rules and practices. At present, however, there are no formal mechanisms, rules, guidelines and protocols for facilitating access, exchange and use of genetic resources from the CSBs in line with national and international policies and protocols. Considering this situation, we propose a model for developing a community seed bank as a legitimate institution (platform) for prior-informed consent (PIC) and ABS mechanisms and formalizing farmers’ rights to genetic resources. This will, however, require creating incentive mechanisms for custodian farmers and communities and bringing support from formal sector agencies through relevant policies, legislation and programs to promote and sustain community seed banks.
Rabitz, F. (2017). Access without benefit-sharing: design, effectiveness and reform of the FAO seed treaty.
The 2001 International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture established a global network of seed banks which grants facilitated access to crops for breeding purposes while aiming that the resulting commercial benefits are shared fairly and equitably. While the treaty has been successful in terms of access, benefits are not being shared. I analyze the causes for the lack of benefit-sharing in terms of the treaty’s institutional design, implementation challenges and the wider problem structure of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture. Subsequently, I evaluate the options which are currently under discussion for a comprehensive reform. I conclude by proposing a set of measures which would enhance the treaty’s effectiveness both in terms of access to plant genetic resources for food and agriculture and the fair and equitable sharing of relevant benefits.
Andersen, R., and Winge, T. (2013). Access and Benefit Sharing Agreement on Teff
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A recent report of the Fridtjof Nansen Institute (FNI), Norway, focuses on the Agreement on Access to, and Benefit Sharing from, Teff Genetic Resources (the Teff Agreement). This article presents some of the major findings and recommendations of the report.
Evjen, G. H., and Moeljopawiro, S. (2010). Workshop on the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture: Benefit–sharing in the Multilateral System
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This report summarizes the presentations, discussions and recommendations of a workshop, co-hosted by the Indonesian Center for Agricultural Biotechnology and Genetic Resources Research and Development, Ministry of Agriculture and the Norwegian Ministry for Agriculture and Food, that was held in Bogor, Indonesia, from 9-11 March 2010. The workshop was organized in order to provide an arena for informal discussions on the implementation of Non-Monetary Benefit Sharing in relation to the Treaty, as implementation and follow up have been somewhat lacking in this respect until now. Non-monetary benefit Sharing as it is dealt with under article 13 of the Treaty is related to the realization of Farmers' Rights since benefit sharing is also central to article 9 on Farmers' Rights.
Rojahn, J. (2010). Fair shares or biopiracy? Developing ethical criteria for the fair and equitable sharing of benefits from crop genetic resources
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One main objective of the Convention on Biological Diversity is the "fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources" (Art. 1). In this PhD thesis, the author has addressed the question what exactly "fair and equitable" benefit sharing could mean, differentiating it into questions concerning aims and purposes, legitimate property rights, who should receive benefits and who should be required to share them, what elements they should consist of, and how these demands could be implemented. For answering these questions, she has first derived general principles of justice in benefit sharing from the conceptions of justice by John Rawls and Thomas Pogge, before then employing them for developing concrete criteria for fair and equitable benefit sharing for crop genetic resources. In a nutshell, fair and equitable benefit sharing according to the principles and criteria identified in this thesis should be conceived and designed (also) as compensation for existing inequalities and injustices. Another central result is the observation that benefit sharing based primarily upon private contracts between individual users and providers is probably not able to meet important demands of justice, such as the protection of the rights of resource holders, multilateral benefit sharing, and benefit sharing for resources already in the public domain. Therefore, the author suggests a global benefit sharing scheme which combines contractual benefit sharing with benefit sharing in the absence of such contracts. Unfortunately, substantial concerns of justice like those considered here are often neglected in politics, e.g. in the current negotiations for an International Regime on Access and Benefit Sharing.
Egziabher, T. B. G. (2005). Benefit-sharing. In B. Borrow (Ed.): The Catch: Perspectives in Benefit Sharing
Egziabher, T. B. G. (2005). Benefit-sharing. In B. Borrow (Ed.): The Catch: Perspectives in Benefit Sharing (p. 201-241). Edmonds, WA: The Edmonds Institute.
Kate, K. T., and Laird, S. A. (1999). The Commercial Use of Biodiversity: Access to Genetic Resources and Benefit-Sharing
Originally published in 1999 The Commercial Use of Biodiversity examines how biodiversity and the genetic material it contains are now as valuable resources. Access to genetic resources and their commercial development involve a wide range of parties such as conservation and research institutes, local communities, government agencies and companies. Equitable partnerships are not only crucial to conservation and economic development but are also in the interests of business and often required by law.
In this authoritative and comprehensive volume, the authors explain the provisions of the Convention on Biological Diversity on access and benefit-sharing, the effect of national laws to implement these, and aspects of typical contracts for the transfer of materials. They provide a unique sector-by-sector analysis of how genetic resources are used, the scientific, technological and regulatory trends and the different markets in Pharmaceuticals, Botanical Medicines, Crop Development, Horticulture, Crop Protection, Biotechnology (in fields other than healthcare and agriculture) and Personal Care and Cosmetics Products.
This will be an essential sourcebook for all those in the commercial chain, from raw material collection to product discovery, development and marketing, for governments and policy-makers drafting laws on access and for all the institutions, communities and individuals involved in the conservation, use, study and commercialisation of genetic resources.
Palacios Flores, X. (1999). Contribution to the Estimation of Countries' Interdependence in the Area of Plant Genetic Resources
Smale, M. (Ed.) (1998). Farmers, Gene Banks and Crop Breeding. Economic Analyses of Diversity in Wheat, Maize and Rice
Smale, M. (Ed.). (1998). Farmers, Gene Banks and Crop Breeding. Economic Analyses of Diversity in Wheat, Maize and Rice. Boston/ Dordrecht/ London: Kluwer Academic.
Farmers, Gene Banks and Crop Breeding: Economic Analyses of Diversity in Wheat, Maize, and Rice responds to concerns about the loss of valuable genetic resources and crop vulnerability arising from widespread cultivation of genetically uniform varieties. It assembles a series of applied studies focusing on the fundamental economic issues related to genetic diversity in crop species, with special reference to developing countries. By presenting the results of initial economic investigations of diversity in the world's three major food crops (wheat, maize, and rice), this volume furthers the understanding of the economic context in which crop breeders make use of genetic resources and their diversity.