July 2013: The Secretariat of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGR) has circulated the reports of the resumed fourth meeting of the Ad Hoc Technical Advisory Committee on the standard Material Transfer Agreement (SMTA) and the Multilateral System (MLS), the resumed seventh meeting of the Ad Hoc Advisory Committee on the Funding Strategy and the first meeting of the Compliance Committee.

Held on 12 April 2013, the resumed fourth meeting of the Committee on the SMTA and the MLS developed a set of options regarding clarifications to or interpretations of the text of the SMTA. It is recalled that the fourth meeting of the Committee, held in November 2012, was suspended in light of the need for more consultations within regional groups.

Held from 26-27 March 2013, in Geneva, Switzerland, the resumed seventh meeting of the Committee on the Funding Strategy dealt mainly with resource mobilization, with a particular focus on innovative approaches, and identified various options to increase the flow of funds to the Treaty’s Benefit-sharing Fund in a predictable, immediate and reliable manner.

Held from 20-22 April 2013, in Rome, Italy, the first meeting of the Compliance Committee developed its draft rules of procedure for consideration and approval by the Governing Body at its fifth session, and made progress on the development of the reporting format pursuant to the Compliance Procedures. [ITPGR Notification][Publication: Report of the resumed fourth meeting of the Committee on the SMTA and the MLS][Publication: Report of the resumed seventh meeting of the Committee on the Funding Strategy][Publication: Report of the first meeting of the Compliance Committee][March 2013 Notification on Prior Intersessional Meetings]