Farmers' rights: global contexts, negotiations and strategies

The International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture was adopted in 2001 to establish a multilateral system of access and benefit sharing for plants. This policy brief highlights the developments in the global negotiations on the conservation, development and use of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture, and the realisation of farmers' rights.<br /><br />The author indicates that the Treaty represented a legally binding international commitment to the improvement of the world&rsquo;s key food and feed crops, dealing simultaneously with farmers&rsquo; rights in several parts of its text. However, with regard to the implementation of farmers&rsquo; rights, the Treaty gives the responsibility to national governments, which is perceived as one of the weakest aspects of the accord. <br /><br />Although this may be true, the author deems it is crucial to realise that important resolutions on farmers' rights have already been adopted later. In this respect, developing and least-developed countries are now able to protect the rights of their farmers and enable them to benefit from future breeding and research in agriculture through the following strategies:<br /> review national measures, including seed regulations; assess their effectiveness in promoting farmers' rights; and make sure to adjust them for the realisation of farmers' rights generate views and experiences on farmers' rights; and share them with stakeholders, other countries, and the Treaty's Secretariat and the Governing Body for required actions at local, national and global levels work with relevant actors and agencies to organise local and national workshops on farmers' rights, and support the Secretariat to convene regional workshops that aim to discuss national experiences on the implementation of farmers' rightsSubsequently, the document points that these strategic initiatives can serve as a basis for more in-depth negotiations.