Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources

The International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources was adopted by the FAO Conference on 3 November 2001. It will come into force on ratification by 40 countries. The FAO Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture will act as the Interim Committee for the Treaty in the meantime.

The objectives of the Treaty are:

"the conservation and sustainable use of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of their use, in harmony with the Convention on Biological Diversity for sustainable agriculture and food security."

Its scope is all plant genetic resources for food and agriculture.

The Treaty is at the cross-roads between agriculture, trade and the environment, is on a par with trade and environmental instruments, and promotes harmony and synergy across the sectors. It establishes a Multilateral System of Access and Benefit-sharing for plant genetic resources, for an agreed list of crops, established on the basis of interdependence and food security. It also provides for benefit-sharing through information exchange, technology transfer, capacity-building, and the mandatory sharing of the monetary and other benefits of commercialisation of products incorporating material accessed from the Multilateral System.

It establishes a Multilateral System of Access and Benefit-sharing for plant genetic resources, for an agreed list of crops, established on the basis of interdependence and food security.

It also provides for benefit-sharing through information exchange, technology transfer, capacity-building, and the mandatory sharing of the monetary and other benefits of commercialisation of products incorporating material accessed from the Multilateral System.

The Treaty includes a Funding Strategy to mobilise funding for priority activities, plans and programmes, in particular in developing countries and countries with economies in transition, taking into account the Leipzig Global Plan of Action. It provides for the realisation of Farmers’ Rights by national governments through:

• the protection of relevant traditional knowledge,
• equitable participation in sharing benefits derived from the use of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture,
• participation in national decision-making related to their conservation and sustainable use.