Module 2 - Design and Implementation of IPR Regimes to Support Plant Breeding in Developing Countries

The past few years have seen increased attention to the strengthening of IPRs in plant breeding. The number of countries that grant such rights has grown, the types of inventions that can be protected have expanded, and a broader scope of protection is offered by extant IPR systems in different countries. The Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS 1993) of the WTO requires all WTO members to introduce at least a minimum level of protection in their national laws for plant varieties and inventions in biotechnology. Least Developed Countries have until 2013 to bring their national IPR laws fully up to the TRIPS standards, but bilateral trade agreements often include strict IPR clauses that go beyond the minimum requirements agreed upon in the WTO. These developments towards strengthened IPRs arise from a trade perspective rather than from a perspective of increasing innovation in the developing countries concerned.

Countries need to decide the type and strength of protection granted in the plant breeding sector, and they must design effective and efficient implementation rules and infrastructure. Throughout these processes, they have to create ownership with a wide range of stakeholders, which is a prerequisite for effective implementation.

TRIPS is just one international agreement that relates to regulatory systems affecting plant breeding. Others include the Convention on Biological Diversity, the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, and discussions at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in the Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge, and Folklore and regarding the Substantive Patent Law Treaty.

This investment note, derived from five case studies inChina, Colombia, India, Kenya, and Uganda (Louwaars 2005), concentrates on the requirements arising from the TRIPS Agreement and the IPR-related trade discussions. It provides a brief introduction to the regulatory options and implementation strategies that are available to countries, and it discusses the role that development organizations may assert in supporting those countries.

Policy and Regulatory Issues

Plant breeding research and seed provision are vital industries that need to be fostered and stimulated. Plant breeding is important for food security at the local and global levels; the ability of adapted varieties to cope with environmental stresses contributes to strategies for sustainable agriculture and to the livelihoods of the rural poor. The provision of productive options for commercial farming is vital for wider economic development.