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Arabic Version:
English Version:
National
Seminar on Plant Variety Protection in Iran
Intellectual property rights (IPR) have become important globally and situations
are evolving very rapidly in the agricultural sector particularly in issues
related to WTO/TRIPs. In Iran, a national seminar on plant variety protection
was organized from 28-29 November 2003 under the auspices of the newly established
Plant Variety Registration, Seed and Plant Certification Institute. The seminar
was divided into four sessions. The first session consisted of introductory
lectures on plant variety protection under UPOV Convention and was intended
for clarifying the relationship between the UPOV Convention and other relevant
international agreements on crop genetic resources conservation (CBD and ITGRFA
(FAO)) and the protection of intellectual property rights of new plant varieties
(WTO/TRIPS). The second session covered presentations on crop improvement
of agricultural, horticultural and industrial crops in Iran followed by the
presentation from ICARDA. The third session focused on technical and administrative
issues including examination of varieties for granting rights, arrangements
for testing and the organization of PVP offices at national/regional levels.
The last session was a panel discussion on clarifying outstanding issues raised
during the seminar on the effects of PVP on genetic resources and intellectual
property rights from national and international perspectives.
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A
large group of people attended the seminar including senior policy makers
from the Ministry of Jahad-e-Agriculture, Directors of Agricultural Research
Centers, senior staff of the newly established institute and other stakeholders.
Two resource persons from UPOV (Vice Secretary-General and Senior Councilor)
and one from ICARDA (Seed Systems Specialist) attended the seminar and made
the presentations. The seminar was an 'eye opener' for policy makers, agricultural
researchers and plant breeders. Samad Mobasser, Plant Variety Registration
and Seed Certification Institute, Karaj; E-mail:
Sa_mobasser @yahoo.com
International Seed Congress in Turkey
A one-day International Seed Congress was held on 18 September 2003 in Ankara,
Turkey. The Congress was organized by the Turkish Seed Industry Association
and attended by over one hundred participants from Turkey, France (GNIS),
Spain (Eurosemillas) and the Netherlands (NAK) as well as by national, regional
and international organizations such as ISF (International Seed Federation),
ICARDA, CIMMYT, etc. The meeting was part of a continuous dialogue among the
stakeholders of national seed industry and to forge stronger partnership between
the public and private sector and to solicit policy and regulatory support
by the Government.
The meeting had three sessions where national and international experts made
presentations. The first session dealt with opportunities and challenges of
international seed trade aimed at informing the seed business community in
Turkey. The organization and development of the seed industry in selected
European countries were also presented to share experiences. The second session
focused on the national policy and regulatory framework of the Turkish seed
industry. Presentations were made on common agricultural and seed policy,
market regulation and variety protection, and the support available for business
development from the relevant departments from the Ministry of Agriculture
and Rural Affairs and local technology development foundation. The third session
was a panel discussion by national policy makers and international experts
on the trends in seed industry in general and the future of Turkish seed sector
in particular.
ICARDA was invited to attend and contribute to this dialogue particularly
in areas of private seed sector development. The meeting provided an opportunity
to interact with colleagues from Turkey and international organizations. The
Turkish Seed Industry Association is a partner for developing national seed
associations in member countries of the WANA Seed Network. Discussion is already
under way for the possibility of organizing a regional seed congress in Istanbul
in 2004 to bring together the stakeholders of the seed industry in the CWANA
region. Turkey has a dynamic emerging private sector and domestic seed industry
valued at $250 million ($110 million in vegetables) and seed export worth
$22 million.
FAO and ICARDA Join Hands to Strengthen Seed Sector in Central Asia and
the Caucuses
A regional FAO TCP project was prepared to establish more efficient seed production,
distribution and marketing systems in Central Asia and the Caucuses (CAC).
The project will analyze the organization, capacity and current developments
of seed systems in the CAC region and acquaint public and private seed sector
stakeholders with new technology and international standards and regulations.
The project will also initiate regional consultation aiming at harmonization
of trade impeding seed regulations.
A regular regional seed conference will be initiated to stimulate exchange
of genetic resources, seed and technology. This first CAC Regional Seed Conference
is expected to bring together seed sector stakeholders in the CAC region and
international specialists in seed regulations and seed program management.
The project will be coordinated through the ICARDA office in Tashkent and
supported by staff from AGPS, FAO and Seed Unit, ICARDA. A.J.G. van Gastel,
Seed Unit, ICARDA, Aleppo, Syria; E-mail:
a.vangastel@ cgiar.org
African Agricultural Technology Foundation
The African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) resulted from over two
years of consultations with several hundred African, North American and European
stakeholders by the Rockefeller Foundation and the Meridian Institute. The
consultations were held to determine the major underlying principles and an
operational model for the AATF in addressing challenges in food security and
poverty reduction. Stakeholder involvement was ensured through a Design Advisory
Committee (DAC), comprising representatives from major stakeholder groups,
(African NARS- Kenya, Ghana, Uganda), CGIAR centers (ICRISAT, CIMMYT, WARDA),
African seed and biotechnology companies (Zimbabwe and Kenya), crop science
corporations (Emergent Genetics, Monsanto, Pioneer HiBred, and Dow-AgroSciences),
and donor organizations (USAID, Rockefeller Foundation, DANIDA, DFID).
The mission and core business of AATF is to link needs of resource-poor farmers
in Sub-Saharan Africa with potential technological (biological, chemical,
mechanical, process) solutions. It will:
- Identify and facilitate royalty free transfers of proprietary technologies
through negotiation
- Enter into contractual agreements with existing institutions that will manage
deployment of the technologies
- Ensure that subsequent constraints after access are addressed
For more information contact: E. Terry, P.O. Box 30709, Nairobi 00100, Kenya;
Tel: ++254-020-630743; Fax: ++254-020-631499; E-mail: e.terry@
cgiar.org; Website: http://www.aftechfound.org
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