Invest in plant variety protection for increased productivity - African countries urged

African countries have been urged to invest in plant variety protection systems to increase agricultural production and ensure food security on the continent.

The Director-General of Africa Regional Intellectual Property Organisation (ARIPO), Twebaze Bemanya, said investment in those areas would enable collaboration along the crop value chain to develop and distribute improved varieties that would respond to farmers’ needs.    

He was speaking at the opening ceremony of a three-day workshop on plant variety protection (PVP) for ARIPO member states in Accra last Wednesday on the theme: “Plant variety protection for sustainable agricultural development and food security in the context of climate change in Africa.”

Mr Bemanya said the continent’s population was growing significantly and, therefore, feeding the people meant farmers had to increase production to ensure food security.

“This is where the governments should intervene to help the farmers overcome challenges like climate change, low yield seed and decreasing land availability for food and agriculture,” he said.

The workshop is being organised by ARIPO, in collaboration with the international union for the protection of new varieties of plants (UPOV), and the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), with support of the Ministry of Justice.

About ARIPO

The Africa Regional Intellectual Property Organisation was established to promote the harmonisation and development of intellectual property laws and matters appropriate to the needs of members and the region as a whole.

It is also to establish common services or organs for the coordination, harmonisation and development of intellectual property activities affecting members. The main objective of the workshop is, therefore, to promote the accession of ARIPO member states to the Arusha Protocol for the protection of new varieties in plant and the UPOV convention.

The theme also underscores the importance of adopting innovative and sustainable approaches to agriculture that could benefit the people, farmers and the environment in the face of evolving climate challenges.

Mr Bemanya said most Asian countries had reformed their agricultural sector by adopting plant variety protection systems which allowed for investment in breeding activities.

Kenya Example

Currently, he said Kenya, a member of ARIPO and UPOV, had already experienced the benefit of a plant variety protection system with the successful development of flower and vegetable export industries in Kenya, which demonstrates how plant variety protection benefit farmers.

“Around four million people, mostly smallholder farmers, are employed directly or indirectly in horticulture or fresh produce. It is estimated that in Kenya, horticultural exports bring in $1billion,” Mr Bemanya added.

A Deputy Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Diana Asonaba Dapaah, said the country had a plant variety protection legal framework in place, the implementation of which began in the fourth quarter of 2023.  

She said the Ghana Industrial Property Office (GHIPO), also known as the IP Office, was collaborating with relevant stakeholders to implement the legal framework for the protection of plant variety in the most appropriate ways for the benefit of society.

The Registrar-General, Grace Issahaque, said the topics had carefully been chosen to provide participants with skills needed to advance the plant variety protection system. “This workshop is being organised in Ghana when the country has just began implementing its PVP system and we look forward to obtaining more knowledge and also sharing our experiences,” she said.

New technology

The Vice Secretary-General of UPOV, Yolanda Huerta, said new technologies such as gene-editing and artificial intelligence had the potential to allow plant breeders to speed up the development of varieties.

She said per the World Farmer’s Organisation, more than 80 per cent of farmers consider new plant varieties important to adapt to climate change. “Farmers demand new varieties to respond to climate change while providing healthy and tasty food choices and affordable prices,” Ms Huerta added.