The meeting sought to have a frank exchange of views towards improved understanding of positions on digital sequence information/genetic sequence data, expansion of the list of crops in Annex I, and payment structure and rates.
It was “[h]eld in a constructive atmosphere characterized by respectful and knowledgeable debates”.
Text-based negotiations will begin at the Working Group’s 12th meeting in September 2024.
The 11th meeting of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group to Enhance the Functioning of the Multilateral System of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) paved the way for text-based negotiations that will begin at the Working Group’s 12th meeting in September 2024. The basis for the talks will be a Co-Chairs’ negotiating draft, to be shared in July.
“Plant genetic resources for food and agriculture (PGRFA) are the raw material for agricultural innovation,” the Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) summary report of the meeting highlights. Emanating from hundreds of years of farmers’ seed-related practices, “they help increase and diversify food production and play a key role in strengthening resilience to pests and diseases and ensuring adaptation to climate change.”
According to ENB, “[t]he ITPGRFA established a Multilateral System (MLS) of access and benefit-sharing (ABS) through the Standard Material Transfer Agreement (SMTA).” The MLS facilitates access to crops considered vital for food security, listed in Annex I of the Treaty. It also institutionalizes monetary and non-monetary benefit-sharing from the use of these resources. However, ENB notes, the benefit-sharing component did not live up to expectations. To enhance the functioning of the MLS, in 2013, parties convened an Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group.
While the negotiations temporarily broke down in 2019, the June 2019 draft package nevertheless reflects “significant moment of compromise and trust.” It includes a draft revised SMTA, a draft amendment of Annex I, and a draft resolution on implementing the enhancement of the MLS. The 11th meeting of the Working Group used that package as a basis for negotiations.
The meeting sought to have a frank exchange of views towards improved understanding of positions on digital sequence information (DSI)/genetic sequence data (GSD), expansion of the list of crops in Annex I, and payment structure and rates. Per the ENB analysis of the meeting, the Co-Chairs’ “strategy to not engage in text-based negotiations at this stage and rather have open discussions on the three hotspots paid off.” “Held in a constructive atmosphere characterized by respectful and knowledgeable debates, the meeting paved the way for text-based negotiations….”
The Working Group convened in Rome, Italy, from 16-18 April 2024. Bringing together approximately 60 participants, the Working Group consists of spokespersons from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) regional groups and stakeholders, including farmers’ organizations, civil society, the seed industry, and research and academia, including the CGIAR. [ENB Coverage of the 11th meeting of the Ad Hoc Open-ended Working Group to Enhance the Functioning of the MLS] [SDG Knowledge Hub Story on the Working Group’s Tenth Meeting]