Report of the Fourth Meeting of the CGIAR Genetic Resources Policy Committee

Report of the fourth meeting of the CGIAR Genetic Resources Policy Committee, held in Stockholm, October 2-4, 1996, M. S. Swaminathan presiding. The Committee discussed CGIAR participation in the International Technical Conference on Plant Genetic Resources held June 1996 in Leipzig, and how to relate IARC medium term plans to the Global Plan of Action for the Conservation and Sustainable Utilization of Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture adopted there. It also reviewed CGIAR participation in the renegotiation of the International Undertaking on Plant Genetic Resources, the third Conference of Parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity and its technical subcommittee, and WTO.The Committee proposed for CGIAR approval a set of guiding principles for CGIAR centers on IPR and genetic resources, negotiated in detail with the centers (Annex 3). It also proposed a statement of CGIAR concerns related to plant genetic resources for use by spokesmen of the Group in various discussions of these issues (Annex 2). It considered reports on an IPGRI study of a multilateral framework for germplasm exchange, farmers rights, the CGIAR Systemwide Genetic Resources Program (SGRP) which had the Intercenter Working Group on Genetic Resources (ICWG-GR) as a steering committee, and the status of the genetic resources policy unit at IPGRI. Plans were made for a workshop on ethics and equity to be held in 1997. The Committee suggested that its mandate should be extended pending the outcome of the system review at ICW97.Agenda document, CGIAR International Centers Week, October-November 1996.