INTERNATIONAL UNION for the PROTECTION of NEW VARIETIES of PLANTS Geneva
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E C/47/2 ORIGINAL: English DATE: September 17, 2013 INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR THE PROTECTION OF NEW VARIETIES OF PLANTS Geneva COUNCIL Forty-Seventh Ordinary Session Geneva, October 24, 2013 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL FOR 2012 (forty-fourth year) Disclaimer: this document does not represent UPOV policies or guidance This document presents the Annual Report of the Secretary-General for 2012. Annex III to this document summarizes the results achieved during 2012 according to the structure of the Program and Budget for the 2012-2013 Biennium (document C/45/4 Rev.2). Table of contents I. COMPOSITION OF THE UNION ................................................................................................................ 2 Members ..................................................................................................................................................... 2 Situation in Relation to the Various Acts of the Convention ....................................................................... 2 Future Members .......................................................................................................................................... 2 II. SESSIONS OF THE COUNCIL AND ITS SUBSIDIARY BODIES ............................................................. 4 Council ........................................................................................................................................................ 4 Consultative Committee .............................................................................................................................. 5 Administrative and Legal Committee, Technical Committee, Technical Working Parties and Working Group on Biochemical and Molecular Techniques, and DNA-Profiling in Particular .................... 9 III. COURSES, SEMINARS, WORKSHOPS, MISSIONS, IMPORTANT CONTACTS ................................... 9 Individual activities ...................................................................................................................................... 9 Distance Learning Course ........................................................................................................................ 18 IV. RELATIONS WITH STATES AND ORGANIZATIONS ............................................................................. 18 V. PUBLICATIONS ........................................................................................................................................ 19 ANNEX I: Members of the Union ANNEX II: Overview of missions in 2012 ANNEX III: Results and performance indicators for 2012 C/47/2 page 2 Abbreviations used in this document CAJ: Administrative and Legal Committee TC: Technical Committee TC-EDC: Enlarged Editorial Committee TWPs: Technical Working Parties TWA: Technical Working Party for Agricultural Crops TWC: Technical Working Party on Automation and Computer Programs TWF: Technical Working Party for Fruit Crops TWO: Technical Working Party for Ornamental Plants and Forest Trees TWV: Technical Working Party for Vegetables BMT: Working Group on Biochemical and Molecular Techniques, and DNA-Profiling in Particular DUS: Distinctness, Uniformity and Stability I. COMPOSITION OF THE UNION Members 1. As of December 31, 2012, the Union comprised 70 members: Albania, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Estonia, European Union, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Oman, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Russian Federation, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States of America, Uruguay, Uzbekistan and Viet Nam. Situation in Relation to the Various Acts of the Convention 2. On December 31, 2012, the situation of the members of the Union in relation to the Convention and its various Acts was as follows: (a) Belgium was bound by the 1961 Convention as amended by the 1972 Act; (b) 19 members were bound by the 1978 Act, namely: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Ecuador, Italy, Kenya, Mexico, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Paraguay, Portugal, South Africa, Trinidad and Tobago and Uruguay; (c) 50 members were bound by the 1991 Act, namely: Albania, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Estonia, European Union, France, Finland, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Morocco, Netherlands, Oman, Panama, Peru, Poland, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Russian Federation, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States of America, Uzbekistan and Viet Nam. 3. Annex I provides the status of the members of the Union in relation to the Convention and its various Acts, as of December 31, 2012. Future Members 4. Under Article 34(3) of the 1991 Act, “[a]ny State which is not a member of the Union and any intergovernmental organization shall, before depositing its instrument of accession, ask the Council to advise it in respect of the conformity of its laws with the provisions of this Convention.” 5. By letter dated September 25, 2012, the Republic of Ghana (hereinafter referred to as “Ghana”) requested the examination of the Plant Breeders’ Bill for conformity with the 1991 Act of the UPOV Convention. C/47/2 page 3 6. At its forty-sixth ordinary session, held in Geneva on November 1, 2012, the Council examined the conformity of the Plant Breeders’ Bill of Ghana with the 1991 Act of the UPOV Convention and decided to: “(a) note the analysis in document C/46/14 and the following changes proposed by the Delegation of Ghana in the Plant Breeders’ Bill of Ghana (Draft Law): (i) the deletion of the word “conclusively” in Section 15(2); (ii) the replacement of the words “Plant Breeders Advisory Committee” by “Plant Breeders Technical Committee” in Section 30; and (iii) the deletion of the word “seed’ in Section 43(g); “(b) take a positive decision on the conformity of Draft Law with the provisions of the 1991 Act of the International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants, which allows Ghana, once the Draft Law is modified as recommended in paragraphs 10, 18 and 24 of document C/46/14, and in subparagraph (a) above, with no additional changes, and the Draft Law is adopted and the Law is in force, to deposit its instrument of accession to the 1991 Act; and “(c) authorize the Secretary-General to inform the Government of Ghana of that decision.” 7. By letter dated October 1, 2012, the United Republic of Tanzania requested the examination of the Plant Breeders’ Rights Bill for Mainland Tanzania for conformity with the 1991 Act of the UPOV Convention. 8. At its forty-sixth ordinary session, held in Geneva on November 1, 2012, the Council examined the conformity of the Plant Breeders’ Rights Bill for Mainland Tanzania with the 1991 Act of the UPOV Convention and decided to: “(a) note the analysis in document C/46/15 and that the Plant Breeders’ Rights Bill for Mainland Tanzania (Draft Law) would incorporate in Section 2 the text “‘Ministry’ means Ministry responsible for agriculture”; “(b) subject to the incorporation in the Draft Law (see Annex II to document C/46/15) of the Minister’s Amendments (see Annex III to document C/46/15), as set out in paragraphs 14, 16, 18, 24, 26, 28, 33, 36, 40, 42 and 43 of document C/46/15, the modifications recommended in paragraphs 22 and 34 of document C/46/15, and in subparagraph (a) above, and the following proposals agreed with the Delegation of the United Republic of Tanzania in Section 14 and Section 22(1) and (4) of the Draft Law: ‘14.-(1) The variety shall be deemed to be new if, at the date of filing of the application for a breeder’s right, propagating or harvested material of the variety has not been sold or otherwise disposed of to any person by or with the consent of the breeder for purposes of exploitation of the variety ‘(a) in the territory of the United Republic of Tanzania, earlier than one year before the date of filing the application; ‘(b) in a territory other than that of the United Republic of Tanzania in which the application has been filed- ‘(i) earlier than four years; or ‘(ii) in the case of trees or of vines, earlier than six years before the said date.’ ‘22.-(1) Any breeder who has duly filed an application for the protection of a variety in one of the members of an international organization dealing with plant breeders’ rights matters which Tanzania is a party shall enjoy a right of priority for a maximum period of twelve months. This period which shall be computed from the date of filing the first application. The day of filing date shall not be included in the later application latter period. ‘[…] ‘(4) The applicant shall, within a period of two years after the expiration of the period of priority, or a period of six months where the first application is rejected or withdrawn, be allowed to furnish to the Registrar any necessary information,