Letter from Concerned scientists to India’s Minister of Agriculture regarding on future of International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources

Date: July 8, 2025

To:

Sri Shivraj Singh Chouhan,
Minister of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare,
Government of India

Subject - Urgent need for Indian intervention on the proposals on the future of genetic resources in the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA)

The 14th Meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group of ITPGRFA contracting parties is taking place from 7-11 July in Lima, Peru. The specific focus of this meeting is to expand the scope of the existing multilateral agreement to include ALL plant genetic resources instead of the restricted list of plants offered by member countries. This is not in the interest of India and other developing countries that are the providers of genetic resources. Apart from this there are other proposals on the table.

We are writing to express our profound concern about the current trajectory of negotiations to change the Multilateral System (MLS) of the International Treaty under which genetic resources are accessed between countries.
India, a leading member of the Treaty, is rich in plant genetic resources, which constitute the foundation of its agriculture and food production. It must not allow any challenges to its sovereign rights over this vital resource.

There is apprehension that the current proposals on the table for the GB 11 will not adequately address the concerns of genetic diversity-rich countries, farmers, and local communities, whose enormous contributions have been and continue to be central to global food security.

1. Pushing for access to ALL Plant Genetic Resources, overtaking existing lists of plants that countries have agreed to present for global access

Concerns

Full access instead of a negotiated access, could significantly compromise a nation’s sovereign rights over its genetic resources and override domestic legislation, like India