Photo：Guenay Ulutuncok

From International Undertaking to International Treaty（IT）

The IT replaces the International Undertaking，a commitment to the conservation and use of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture which had existed since 1983 in non-binding form under the FAO umbrella，and whose provisions had to be revised after the adoption of the Convention on Biological Diversity（CBD）. The IT now regulates a number of problem areas which have been controversial in recent years，including some omitted from the CBD drafting process as potential risks to its adoption. This specifically relates to Farmers’ Rights and the use of the extensive ex situ collections of plant genetic resources of national and international institutions and research centres. The centrepiece of the IT is the creation of a multilateral system intended to facilitate access to a range of crop plant genera and species. In addition，the IT sets out to regulate the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the use of the plant genetic material made available. The treaty will enter into binding force in international law 90 days after ratification by 40 states，probably in 2004/2005. Only then will a Governing Body of representatives from all member states begin to implement the treaty in concrete terms.

Plant genetic resources for food and agriculture are the basis for the world supply of food and for all breeding efforts. Free movement of germplasm is an essential prerequisite for the adaptation of crops to changing environmental conditions and market requirements. As most crop plants today are spread throughout the world，there is tremendous global interdependence with regard to these resources. Every country is dependent on secure access to suitable breeding material. Most of this material these days is no longer found under in situ conditions in southern nations，but is stored in gene banks（ex situ）. Up to 95 percent of the known cultivated species used in agriculture are stored in gene banks worldwide. According to the Report on the State of the World’s Plant Genetic Resources（FAO，1996），stored collections of e.g. wheat account for 95 percent of cultivated varieties and 60 percent of wild varieties，with equivalent figures for maize of 95 percent and 15 percent and for potatoes of 95 percent and 40 percent respectively.

After seven years of negotiations，the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture（“IT”）was adopted in Rome in November 2001. The broad goal of the treaty is to create a legally binding framework for the protection and sustainable use of all plant genetic resources for food and agriculture. The multilateral approach taken in the IT to facilitating access to propagating material for the most important food crops and forages，including early cultivated varieties and wild crop relatives，is intended to ensure that transborder exchange is maintained.