Cgrfa/Mic-1/02/Rep

CGRFA-MIC-1/02/REP First Meeting of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture acting as Interim Committee of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture Rome, Italy, 9 – 11 October 2002 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations CGRFA/MIC-1/02/REP REPORT OF THE COMMISSION ON GENETIC RESOURCES FOR FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ACTING AS THE INTERIM COMMITTEE FOR THE INTERNATIONAL TREATY ON PLANT GENETIC RESOURCES FOR FOOD AND AGRICULTURE First Meeting Rome, 9 – 11 October 2002 FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS Rome, 2002 CGRFA/MIC-1/02/REP i CONTENTS Para. I. Introduction 1 II. Election of the Chair and Vice-Chairs and opening of the session 2-4 III. Report on the status of signatures and ratification of the Treaty 5-8 IV. Adoption of the Rules of Procedure for the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture acting as the Interim Committee 9-10 Elements of the Work Programme and Budget for the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture acting as the Interim Committee 11 Draft Rules of Procedure and Financial Rules, and draft Procedures to Promote Compliance for the consideration of the Governing Body 12-14 Terms of Reference for the Expert Group on the terms of the Standard Material Transfer Agreement 15-16 Work Programme and Budget 2003-2004 17-23 V. Next Meeting of the Interim Committee for the Treaty 24 Appendixes A. Agenda of the First Meeting of the Interim Committee B. Signatures and ratifications of the International Treaty, as at 28 October 2002 C. Rules of Procedure adopted by the Interim Committee D. Terms of Reference for the Expert Group on the terms of the Standard Material Transfer Agreement. E. Consolidated Work Programme and Indicative Budget for the Interim Committee, 2003- 2004 F. List of Documents G. List of Participants and Observers CGRFA/MIC-1/02/REP 1 REPORT OF THE COMMISSION ON GENETIC RESOURCES FOR FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ACTING AS THE INTERIM COMMITTEE FOR THE INTERNATIONAL TREATY ON PLANT GENETIC RESOURCES FOR FOOD AND AGRICULTURE I. INTRODUCTION 1. The First Meeting of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture acting as the Interim Committee for the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, was held in Rome from 9 to 11 October 2002. A list of delegates is attached as Appendix G. II. ELECTION OF THE CHAIR AND VICE-CHAIRS AND OPENING OF THE SESSION 2. Mr. Fernando Gerbasi (Venezuela), Chair of the Commission, opened the meeting and welcomed the delegates and observers. He called for nominations for the Chair and Vice-Chairs. Mr. Gerbasi was elected as Chair of the Interim Committee. Six Vice-Chairs were elected: Ms. E. Matos (Angola), Mr. A. Abou Zeid (Egypt), Mr. C. Han Hee (Malaysia), Ms. K. Herrmann (Australia), Mr. G. Kleijer (Switzerland) and Mr. B. Fraleigh (Canada). Mr. M. Vernooij (The Netherlands) was elected as Rapporteur. 3. Ms. Louise O. Fresco, Assistant Director-General, Agriculture Department, welcomed the delegates and observers to the meeting. She stressed the special nature of plant genetic diversity, noting that the exchange of plant genetic resources has been of great mutual benefit of all countries and regions since agriculture began. Ms. Fresco observed that the Treaty was a modern and flexible instrument, and that the Director-General had appealed to all countries to ratify the Treaty as soon as possible. She informed the Interim Committee that the objectives of the Treaty would be supported by a number of initiatives, such as plans to establish a Global Conservation Trust, which would operate within the framework of the Treaty’s funding strategy and in line with the Leipzig Global Plan of Action. Ms. Fresco noted that the Trust would provide a flow of funds to help national governments and international institutions develop an economically efficient and sustainable system for ex situ conservation. She asked delegates to bear in mind as they progressed with their deliberations that the implementation of the work programme agreed to by the Interim Committee would depend upon the availability of adequate extra-budgetary funds. 4. The Interim Committee adopted the Agenda, as given in Appendix A. 2 CGRFA/MIC-1/02/REP III. REPORT ON THE STATUS OF SIGNATURES AND RATIFICATION OF THE TREATY 5. Mr. J.T. Esquinas, Secretary of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, informed delegates of the status of signatures and ratification of the Treaty, noting that the Treaty would come into force 90 days after the fortieth ratification had been deposited. He reported that 60 countries and the European Community had already signed the Treaty and eight countries had ratified it. A list of signatures and ratifications of the Treaty is attached in Appendix B. 6. The Interim Committee noted that: the Sixth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (7-19 April 2002, The Hague), in its Ministerial Declaration, had “urged all States to ratify and fully implement […] the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture”; The Declaration adopted by the World Food Summit: five years later (10-13 June 2002, Rome) had recognized “the importance of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, in support of food security”, and had called “on all countries that have not yet done so to consider signing and ratifying the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, in order that it shall enter into force as soon as possible”; in the Johannesburg Declaration on Sustainable Development, countries participating in the World Summit on Sustainable Development (26 August - 4 September, 2002), had stated that they committed themselves to the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, in which they “invite countries that have not done so to ratify the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.” 7. Many country representatives informed the Interim Committee that national procedures are well underway to both sign and ratify the Treaty. Countries that had already signed or ratified the Treaty encouraged other countries to do so as soon as possible, in order to bring it into force. Four countries - Angola, Colombia, Cuba, and Iran - announced their intention to sign the Treaty during the Session. 8. The importance of assisting developing countries and countries with economies in transition in the preparation of national legislation to implement the Treaty was recognized. Members called on FAO to give priority consideration to such requests, and appealed to donors to make extra-budgetary funds available to support such work. IV. ADOPTION OF RULES OF PROCEDURE FOR THE COMMISSION ON GENETIC RESOURCES FOR FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ACTING AS THE INTERIM COMMITTEE 9. The Interim Committee recalled that the Conference, at its Thirty-first Session in November 2001, through Resolution 3/2001, had adopted the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, and mandated interim arrangements for the implementation of the Treaty. As part of these interim arrangements, the Conference had requested the Director-General to convene the First Meeting of the Interim Committee for the Treaty in 2002, and has called on the Commission acting as Interim Committee for the Treaty to adopt its Rules of Procedure at its first session. CGRFA/MIC-1/02/REP 3 10. The Interim Committee adopted its Rules of Procedure, as given in Appendix C. It recognized that the adoption of the Rules of Procedure was without prejudice to the consideration of the rules of procedure for the Governing Body of the Treaty. V. ELEMENTS OF THE WORK PROGRAMME AND BUDGET FOR THE COMMISSION ON GENETIC RESOURCES FOR FOOD AND AGRICULTURE, ACTING AS THE INTERIM COMMITTEE 11. The Interim Committee for the Treaty considered the various elements of its Work Programme and Budget 2003-2004, in the light of the document, Work Programme and Budget, 2003-20041. Draft Rules of Procedure and Financial Rules, and Draft Procedures to Promote Compliance for the consideration of the Governing Body 12. The Interim Committee considered three items as a group: document the Draft Rules of Procedure for the Governing Body of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture2 ; document the Draft Financial Rules for the Governing Body of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture3 and document Procedures to Promote Compliance with the International Treaty for Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture4. 13. The Interim Committee for the Treaty decided to establish an Open-Ended Expert Working Group, with appropriate technical support, to meet in the inter-sessional period. The Working Group would address, firstly, the Rules of Procedure for the Governing Body, using as a basis for its work the Annex of document Draft Rules of Procedure. It would then address the Draft Financial Rules for the Governing Body, using as a basis for its work Annex 1 of document Draft Financial Rules. Finally, it would address procedures to promote compliance with the Treaty, and for this purpose, requested the Director-General to collect countries’ views on compliance with the Treaty. It was agreed that countries’ submissions in this process should be placed on the FAO Internet web-site. The Interim Committee for the Treaty requested the Secretariat to compile and analyse the replies, and produce a report that might form the basis of the Working Group’s deliberations on this question. It decided that the Working Group would submit the results of its deliberations to the Interim Committee for the Treaty. 14. The Interim Committee for the Treaty stressed the importance of ensuring that developing countries and countries with economies in transition were able to participate fully in the Open-Ended Expert Working Group, and appealed to donor countries to make the necessary funds available, as part of the 2003-2004 Work Programme and Budget of the Interim Committee for the Treaty.

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