Deliberations in the 19th CGRFA Session

Tags: International News

The 19th session of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (CGRFA) is being held in Rome, Italy from 17-21 July.

An Overview of the News 

• The meeting was held at the headquarters of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Rome.

• Topics for discussion: Delegates and observers will focus on three main themes in the session: a review of work on the impact of biodiversity on nutrition and human health, access and benefit-sharing for food and agriculture, and digital sequence information for food and agriculture.

• Director General of FAO - Qi Dongyu

About CGRFA

• It is the only permanent intergovernmental body that addresses all components of biodiversity for food and agriculture.

• It was established in 1983 with the aim of reaching an international consensus on policies for the sustainable use and conservation of genetic resources for food and agriculture and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising from their use.

• The commission has 179 member states, making it a globally representative organisation.

• India is one of the member states actively involved in the initiatives of the Commission.

• The intergovernmental body guides the preparation of the Periodic Global Assessment of Genetic Resources and Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture.

• It is responsible for developing global plans of action, codes of conduct and other policy tools, and overseeing their implementation.

• Important achievements of the Commission include the establishment of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA), which is an important step towards promoting sustainable agricultural practices and ensuring the equitable availability of genetic resources for future generations.

ITPGRFA:

ITPGRFA, or the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, was adopted by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations on 3 November 2001. Its main objectives are as follows:

• Recognizing the important role of farmers in maintaining crop diversity, which is vital to feeding the world's population.

• To establish a global system that provides farmers, plant breeders and scientists access to plant genetic resources for agriculture.

• Ensuring that the benefits derived from the use of these genetic resources are shared by the recipients with the countries where the resources originated.