With discussions on the funding strategy having been suspended in view of a lot of concerns raised by the Contracting Parties of the International Treaty on the emphasized disinterest of developed countries to provide for and push through with the funding whereas developing countries have already complied in good faith, negotiations on the draft mechanism on compliance and non-compliance of the International Treaty was also suspended, which compelled the Governing Body to move into the next agenda on Article 6 of the International Treaty on Sustainable Use of Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.
Recognizing Article 6 of the International Treaty as an entry point to emphasize the need to recognize and implement Article 9 of the International Treaty on Farmers' Rights in view of the remarkable work and contributions of farmers in the past and in the present in the conservation and sustainable utilization of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture, and the future contributions that farmers can make in maintaining and developing the crop diversity, Mr. Candido Baldapan, a farmer representing the Farmers' Consultative Council (a federation of 6 people's organizations from Bohol Philippines) and speaking in behalf of other farmers from the Philippines, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Brazil, Venezuela and Cuba who shared their experiences in a side event organized by the Community Biodiversity Development Conservation (CBDC) Network, expressed his perspective as a farmer on Article 6 as follows:
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In Bohol, Philippines where I come from, our farmers' federation is involved in a lot of activities on conservation and sustainable use of seeds on our farm. We continuously develop our seeds by selection, breeding, evaluation, seed keeping including work to improve our soil and manage pest. Our group, from 1996 to 2006 was able to develop 63 farmer varieties from off-type selections, 48 farmer varieties from our own breeding work and we are currently evaluating 17 segregating lines. In contrast, our national rice research institute was able to release only 55 inbred lines from 1994-2004.
In Lao PDR, farmers were able to develop about 99 varieties of sticky rice to add to their already diverse rice planted in their filed in 5years. In Vietnam, there are more than 100 varieties developed by farmers in the Mekong Delta also in the last 5 years.
We continuously conserve our seeds by planting them every season and keeping them in our own homes or in community seedbanks. We have even asked a local agricultural college to give us the space to keep some of the seeds for replanting and free distribution. Whatever seeds are left, we sell to finance our group and to maintain our local seedbanks.
My farmer friend from Zimbabwe mentioned yesterday that they produce around 180 tons of different seeds, of good quality, but under their national legislation, they cannot sell these seeds through the formal market because they are not registered seed growers and their seed is not inspected by registered inspectors. How is this possible?
In Vietnam, one local government recognized the work of farmers in seed production and conservation and has valued farmers contribution to their province at US$1.2M in 2006. That is a significant contribution, about 1/4 of what the Treaty needs as Funds in order to operate. We farmers make this contribution, but how come the recognition of our work stops short in paper?
In Brazil, a great number of local experiences of production and use of traditional seeds may become illegal if the government puts in practice its proposals to amend seed and plant variety protection acts.
In Malawi, my friend here asks if it is possible to be consulted in setting prices of produce, including seeds before the government decides on the price?
We came to this Governing Body Meeting with positive hope of finding active support to our work, but there is silence.
We have been trying our very best to follow and understand the discussions in this meeting but found that there was no mention on how our rights as farmers can be supported in the Funding Strategy. We have heard in this Meeting of the Multilateral System but it is difficult for us to understand how this Multilateral System can assist us farmers, nor the benefits we can receive from all those crops places in the system.
We need to have Farmers' Rights realized and implemented now, in relation to our work on conservation and sustainable use of seeds.
We farmers call on the Governing Body to:
1. Recognize our work on conservation and sustainable use by calling for our participation. We are facing a number of challenges on seed laws and policies. We call on the Governing Body to review the national laws, to guarantee free use of seeds and trade policies in relation to Farmers' Rights.
2. To encourage parties for concrete, tangible support to on-farm conservation and farmers' work in breeding and sustainable agriculture.
Our rights to seeds is important for us. It gives us the food we eat. It gives us our livelihoods. Our rights to seeds also needs that we are provided with other rights - to land, to water, to culture, to knowledge, to information, to be free of genetically modified organisms, to participation and decision-making. It is our right to life. The realization of Farmers' Rights starts here, right now in the Governing body meeting.\
Salamat po.
Highlighted also in the short discussion on Article 6 are the following concerns: the need to emphasize how farmers benefit from the sustainable use of PGRFA; transfer of technology from developed countries to assist developing countries in building their capacities in conservation and sustainable use; the need to have a more comprehensive report reflecting efforts from both developed and developing countries on sustainable use, and, in particular, recognizing farmers' use of traditional varieties and the potential to learn from farmers. In closing, the Chair emphasized two points on Article 6 as an agenda item: (1) that Article 6 is an important component of the International Treaty; and (2) there is lack of information on policy measures for sustainable use.
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