Managing Agrobiodiversity in Rural Areas · GTZ's sectoral project "Managing Agrobiodiversity in Rural Areas" The project promotes self-reliant food security and hence poverty reduction

Deutsche Gesellschaft fürTechnische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) GmbH

ManagingAgrobiodiversity in Rural Areas

The 1992 Rio de Janeiro UNConference on Environment andDevelopment (UNCED) set the stagefor a new debate on the utilization ofthe natural life-support systems of ourplanet. While in the 1970s and 1980senvironmental protection emerged asa major issue in society, in the 1990sthe adoption of Agenda 21 and of theConvention on Biological Diversity(CBD) focused attention on the con-servation and sustainable use ofgenetic resources and the requisitelegal framework conditions.

To support developing countries intheir efforts to implement Agenda 21and the Biodiversity Convention, theGerman Federal Ministry for EconomicCooperation and Development (BMZ)commissioned the Deutsche Gesell-schaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit(GTZ) GmbH (German TechnicalCooperation) to implement the project"Managing Agrobiodiversity in RuralAreas". The Project concentrates spe-cifically on the sphere of agricultureand food security, aiming to enhancethe long-term conservation and uti-lization of plant and animal geneticresources in support of agriculturalproduction. In this endeavour, theProject develops concepts and strate-gies and supports their integration intechnical cooperation activities in thefield.

In the area of plant genetic resources,GTZ can draw upon a wealth of morethan 20 years of experience. As farback as the 1970s, GTZ was alreadyproviding targeted support to partnercountries in Africa and Latin America

This Convention was signed at the1992 'Earth Summit' (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro. By now, more than 170countries have ratified the CBD. It aims to promote the conservationand sustainable use of the componentsof biological diversity in original surroundings (in-situ), to regulateaccess to biological resources and toshare equitably the benefits arisingfrom the utilization of such resources('benefit-sharing').

The Convention onBiological Diversity (CBD)

in implementing conservation pro-grammes, at that time still mainly in gene banks. In the meantime,conservation and use in naturalenvironments and on farmers' fields isthe prime focus. In the sphere of bio-diversity advise to partner governmentson political and legal framework con-ditions is an important issue.Development cooperation principles –participation of affected groups,particularly of women, building self-help capacities and promoting thesustainability of activities – areapplied throughout.

The need forconservationBiological diversity – or 'biodiversity'for short – encompasses diversity atthe genetic, species and ecosystemlevels. Within individual plant or ani-mal species, genetic diversity is the

guarantor of variability -the abundance of plantvarieties and animal bre-eds. Agricultural biodiver-sity or 'agrobiodiversity' isdefined as that part ofbiodiversity which, withinthe context of agriculturalproduction, delivers food,contributes to people's

In-situ conservation and use of genetic diversity are of prime importance in the project.

Sectoral project for the in agriculture in

2

livelihoods and conserves habitats. Itis the fruit of thousands of years ofobservation, selection, exchange andbreeding by the world's farmers.

Plant and animal genetic resourcesare the primary source material forthe further development of cropvarieties and animal breeds by far-mers and breeders. Equally, biologicaldiversity in agriculture safeguards the

potential for natural adaptation tochanges in the environment and eco-systems, and for adaptation to shiftsin human nutritional requirements.

The small farmers of Africa, Asia andLatin America – and above all thewomen, who are responsible for thegreater part of food production inthese countries – are particularlydependent upon genetic resources. A rich diversity of native plantvarieties and locally adapted animalbreeds secures these farmers' survivalin the face of difficult climaticconditions and marginal soils.

In order to sustain biological diversityin agriculture and thus to secure thefoundation for feeding present andfuture generations, FAO, the Food andAgriculture Organization of the UnitedNations, called upon the internationalcommunity to attend a 'Plant Summit'in Leipzig in 1996. The summit adop-ted a Global Plan of Action for theConservation and SustainableUtilization of Plant Genetic Resourcesfor Food and Agriculture (GPA).Together with Agenda 21 and theBiodiversity Convention adopted inRio, this creates a basis for re-adjustingthe political coordinates of ecologicallyand socially sustainable developmentin agriculture. These instrumentsprovide a framework for integratingmore closely the conservation andenhancement of agriculturalbiodiversity in development planningat all levels – village and community,regional, national and international.The GPA aims to find solutions tailo-red to local concerns, be it to supporton-farm seed management to encoura-ge the use of neglected food plant spe-cies, or to reintroduce locally adaptedvarieties lost due to civil strife or natu-ral disasters. The Plan of Actionaddresses four thematic areas: in-situconservation and development; ex-situconservation; utilization of plantgenetic resources, including under-utilized species; institutional andpersonnel capacity building, includingthe promotion of public awareness ofthe value of plant genetic resources.By signing the GPA, states havecommitted themselves to its imple-mentation at national level.

The FAO Global Plan of Action (GPA)

conservation of genetic diversity support of food and income security

Since 1993 the development andimplementation of the Global Strategyhave taken place. A global focal pointwas established at FAO to develop itsframework. The strategy has beendesigned to provide a comprehensiveframework for the management offarm animal genetic resources. It consists of several inter-related com-ponents and elements:• The intergovernmental mechanismto ensure direct government involve-ment and continuity of police adviceand support• The planning and implementationstructure, providing the enablingframework for country action andregional and global support• The technical programme of work,aimed at supporting the effectivemanagement of animal geneticresources at the country level• The reporting and evaluation com-ponent to provide critical data andinformation required for guidance,cost-effective planning and action, andto report on the state of diversity, thestate of country capacity and the state of art.

The Global Strategy for theManagement of Farm Animal genetic resources

3

FAO data on the erosion of geneticdiversity give cause for concern. It iswidely assumed that the diversity ofcultivated plants has declined bysome 75% since the middle of the19th century. Originally, severalthousand crop plant species providedfood and clothing. Today, the numberhas dropped to about 150, and insome places there are only twelve.The situation with regard to livestockis just as bleak. A projected 35% ofthe mammalian and 63% of the aviangenetic resources of the world's 5400domestic animal genetic resourcesthat are now registered in FAO'sDomestic Animal Diversity Information(DAD-IS) system are now at risk of

loss. 740 breeds are already listed asextinct. If a mere 5% were to be lostover the next year, 2 or 3 breeds ofdomestic animals would be lost everytwo weeks. Plant and animal geneticerosion is advancing unabated inmany countries. This loss is duelargely to the expansion ofmodern commercial agricul-ture, with its high-yieldingvarieties and high-perfor-mance breeds. Nationallaws and policies, insome cases driven byinternational com-mitments, oftenpromote modern

Agrobiodiversity erosion and losscommercial farming systems one-sidedly. Altered patterns ofconsumption, climatic changes, civilstrife, wars and the resulting massmigration are further causes of theloss of genetic resources andassociated knowledge.

The loss of agrobiodiversity – andthus of native plant varieties and ani-mal breeds – is increasingly curtailingthe access of present and future gene-rations in the South to the geneticmaterial needed for adaptation bybreeding. The associated risks areundermining local and regional foodsecurity.

Small-farmer producers depend heavily on genetic resources.

4

Political forums and disputesFour international agreements formthe main forums in which the conflictrelating to agrobiodiversity iscurrently discussed:

• The Conferences of the Parties tothe above-mentioned 1992Biodiversity Convention, whichcovers biological diversity, includingagricultural biological diversity.Activities are conducted on thebasis of a joint progamme of workwith FAO. Decisions impactingupon agrobiodiversity have alsobeen taken in the process of negotiating a Biosafety Protocolunder the CBD.

• The International Undertaking onPlant Genetic Resources (IUPGR),an FAO agreement of 1983, is currently being renegotiated andharmonised with the CBD. The revised International Undertaking isexpected to be a legally bindingnew international agreement, closely linked both to FAO and theCBD. The cornerstone of theInternational Undertaking is to be aMultilateral System for FacilitatedAccess and Benefit-sharing for plantgenetic resources for food and agriculture.

• The International Union for theProtection of New Varieties ofPlants (UPOV), which protects therights of breeders. The 1978 Act ofthe UPOV Convention allowed farmers to use also protected varieties freely for cultivation. The

Act of 1991 restricted this 'far-mers' privilege'. At the same

time, the access rights ofbreeders to certain

varieties were limited.

• The World Trade Organization(WTO) agreement signed inMarrakesh in 1994 includes agriculture in the world trade liberalization process for the firsttime. The WTO/TRIPS (Trade-Related Aspects of IntellectualProperty Rights) Agreement requiresWTO members to establish patentrights and other intellectual pro-perty rights. This also relates to genetic resources, an aspect whichhas given rise to concern, particu-larly in developing countries,which fear this will lead to increasing monopolization of accessto seed.

Agrobiodiversity-related issues deba-ted in the above political arenasinclude the following:- Who owns biological resources,

and who controls access to them?- How should their use be regulated,

and how should the resultingbenefits be shared equitably?

- How can local communities receive compensation for theirsupra-generational breeding contributions?

- How can effective measures beimplemented to ensure in-situconservation of genetic resourcesfor food and agriculture?

- And, finally: Should agriculturalproduce – and thus food – be subject, in the course of globalization and free trade, to the same economic mechanisms as other commodities?

Contentious issues

5

By implementing the project"Managing Agrobiodiversity in RuralAreas", GTZ aims to promote collab-oration, exchange and networkingamong the various institutionsinvolved in agrobiodiversity manage-ment – in the policy arena, amongthe research community and in thefield. These include institutions in thepartner countries, German andinternational public-, private-sectorinstitutions and non-governmentalorganizations (NGOs).

The sectoral project advises andsupports German developmentcooperation projects by providing thefollowing services:• Planning and organizing consultant

assignments in projects (projectappraisals and project progressreviews)

• Advising governmental bodies and NGOs

• Disseminating know-how,placing experts and establishingcontacts among cooperation partners

• Preparing studies• Developing and refining conceptual

approaches• Promoting exchange of experience

among organizations• Organizing training measures and

workshops.

Activities are already in progresstogether with GTZ projects and theirpartner organizations in the Maghreb,West Africa, southern Africa, CentralAmerica and South Asia.

In addition to bilateral projects,cooperation partners include otherBMZ-funded sectoral projects, forinstance "Implementing theBiodiversity Convention" and "PoliticalFramework for Biotechnology andGenetic Engineering".

• Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

• International Plant GeneticResources Institute (IPGRI)

• Centre for Genetic Resources, the Netherlands (CGN)

• German Centre for Documentationand Information in Agriculture(ZADI) with its Information Centrefor Genetic Resources (IGR)

• German and international NGOs and networks

• German and developing country universities and research facilities

Further cooperation partners of GTZ's sectoral project "Managing Agrobiodiversity in Rural Areas"

The project promotesself-reliant food

security and hencepoverty reduction too.

The project, with its supra-regionaland cross-sectoral design, focuses ondeveloping long-term concepts andstrategies with whose help the erosionof agrobiodiversity can be reducedover the long term. At the same time,the project aims to contribute toraising public awareness on theimportance of the diversity of animalbreeds and plant varieties for self-reli-ant food security and thus for povertyreduction. As a part of awareness-raising and strategy developmentefforts, the project supplies decision-makers in developing countries andthe German development cooperationarena with the information and toolsneeded for political debate andprovides advice for interested actors.

The sectoral project's service package

6

Previous studies have yielded anunderstanding of gender issues andthe socio-economic value of suchgardens. Since 1998, IPGRI, withBMZ/GTZ support, has been explo-ring new terrain in internationalagricultural research: in a five-countrystudy, research findings from differentcontinents and ecoregions on bio-logical diversity in home gardens arebeing exchanged; and methods arebeing developed to enhance thecontribution of these dynamic micro-

Examples of GTZ's workInternational agricultural researchin cooperation with IPGRI: The contribution of home gardensto the in-situ conservation of plantgenetic resources

Home gardens are micro-environ-ments preserving and utilizing a greatdiversity of species, varieties andcultivation techniques. Usuallycultivated by women, these gardensenrich the diet of families. They arean important source of provisions andincome for farming households, butalso for resource poor urban families.

ecosystems to agrobiodiversity con-servation, making greater use of themwithin the context of in-situ/on-farmmeasures.The project involves interdisciplinaryteams of scientists from Cuba, Ghana,Guatemala, Venezuela and Vietnam.

The German Institute of PlantGenetics and Crop Plant Research(IPK) is supporting the establishmentof a worldwide documentation ofcrop plants and neglected speciescultivated in home gardens. Usingparticipatory approaches, theresearchers are examining the rela-tionship between agrobiodiversity,income creation and food security.On this basis, they are elaboratingpractical proposals for cultivating andutilizing specific species in partnercountries. A further function of theresearch findings is to convey to poli-tical decision-makers the potentialharboured by home gardens.

In contrast to ex-situ preservation, on-farm conservation of geneticresources through cultivation and use in farms offers the advantage offurther development – for instancethrough targeted selection – and thusevolutionary adaptation.

In-situ/on-farm conservation:Preservation through use

The Maya communities in Guatemala growblack pepper in their gardens – a goodsource of income.

7

A network for plant geneticresources in Central America(REMERFI)

Central America is a region endowedwith particularly rich biodiversity. Thisalso applies to economically importantcrop plants such as maize, beans,gourds or tomatoes. However, geneticerosion is jeopardizing agriculture andthus the development perspectives inthe region. In this situation, and inview of advancing globalization,government bodies and research insti-tutes in the agriculture and forestrysectors of Costa Rica, El Salvador,Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico,

GTZ is further cooperating with IPGRIin Brazil and Argentina in conservingand utilizing forest genetic resources.In Morocco, within the framework ofa global programme, it is collabora-ting in the development of the knowledge base for in-situ conserva-tion of specific crop species.

Nicaragua and Panama have agreedto strengthen their position by net-working their activities in the sphereof plant genetic resources. GTZ issupporting this initiative. Cooperationunder the umbrella of the REMERFInetwork comprises promotion of in-situ and ex-situ conservation measu-res, training, information and dataexchange – also via the Internet –and regional coordination in the rele-vant political frame conditions. Inpractical work, particular importanceis attached to the integration of smallfarmers and indigenous communities.

Promoting seed production byself-help groups in southern Africa

In the southern African region, thediversity of crop plant varieties impor-tant to food security is particularlyendangered. For instance, whileZimbabwe's commercial farming sec-tor uses hybrid varieties to producefor regional and world markets, thefarmers’ varietes of maize, sorghum,millet or legume adapted to marginalecosystems – although economically

Women small-scale farmers in SouthernAfrica secure their harvests by cultivatinga large number of farmers´ varieties.

less important – are the mainstay ofthe harvests of small farmers. This iswhy GTZ, in cooperation with theSouthern African DevelopmentCommunity (SADC), is supporting aregional project for the productionand exchange among village commu-nities of seeds of locally adaptedvarieties. The aim is to encourage far-ming households to save and propa-gate seeds themselves. Practical stepsinclude providing support for localseed fairs at which farmers can offerand exchange their material.Furthermore, in cooperation withlocal organizations, seed growingpilot projects are used to identify theinteractions between local knowledgesystems and national research institu-tes. As there is currently a lack ofeffective exchange among actors inthe seed sector, GTZ places a particu-lar focus upon creating a correspon-ding network in the region.

Propagating disease-tolerant farmanimals in West Africa

In West Africa, animal products andservices – meat, milk, traction anddung – are very important. However,the breeders of small and large rumi-nants suffer recurrent and seriouslivestock losses caused by tick-bornediseases and by the infestation oftheir herds by tsetse flies, the vectorof trypanosomiasis. Indigenous farmanimals such as N'Dama cattle,Djallonké sheep or West Africandwarf goats have a strong inherentresistance to these diseases. However,their performance is generally poorerthan that of sensitive zebu cattle orother breeds exotic to the region. A regional EU-funded programme fora sustainable strategy for food andincome security in the West Africantsetse belt thus centres on controllingtsetse flies and ticks and improvingdisease-tolerant farm-animal breeds.Within this context, GTZ is assistingthe International TrypanotoleranceCentre (ITC) in the Gambia in theestablishment and activities of anapplications-oriented research group,whose task is to improve the per-formance of indigenous farm animals.The project's target group includesboth small and more market-orientedfarmers.

Djallonké sheep and ...

... shorthorn cattle are resistant indigenousproductive livestock species in Western Africa.

9

Promoting postgraduate trainingin the agricultural sector

The Southern African Centre forAgricultural Research and Training(SACCAR) provides a regional agricul-tural training programme for 14 sou-thern African countries. This programmpromotes postgraduate training, andnetworks the regional universities andresearch institutes which address agri-cultural issues. Activities focus uponthe conservation and sustainable useof renewable resources, consequentlyconcentrating upon regionally rele-vant food security. The universities of4 countries provide teaching andcarry out research in a variety of dis-ciplines. Corresponding programmesare being developed within the con-text of a GTZ-SACCAR project. InMalawi, for instance, courses on ani-mal genetic resources are being heldfor scientists, lecturers and decision-makers. The institute for crop produc-tion of the university of Zambia isworking on the biological diversity ofindigenous crop species, cooperatingin turn with the SADC Plant GeneticResources Centre (SPGRC) in Lusakaand IPGRI in Rome.

Using traditional knowledge insouthern India to preserve plantgenetic resources

The Indian subcontinent is home tonumerous indigenous communities,most of whom have preserved theirtraditional way of life and socio-cu-ltural identity. The southern Indianstates of Orissa, Kerala, AndhraPradesh and Tamil Nadu are particu-larly renowned for their culturaldiversity and rich tropical vegetation –a combination which has sustained asophisticated system of traditionalmedicine.

The indigenous communities in SouthernIndia cultivate yams in their fields as wellas rice crops.

Seed samples are preserved and classifiedin Southern Africa's regional gene bank.

10

However, destructive exploitation ofthe region's forests is causing a de-cline in plant diversity and the asso-ciated ethno-botanical knowledge.The Swaminathan Foundation inTamil Nadu aims to give greater rec-ognition to the prudent methods ofindigenous communities in managingbiodiversity. A further aim is to counteragrobiodiversity loss by developingimproved cultivation systems andconservation strategies. GTZ ispromoting NGO training, the esta-blishment of a greenhouse and acommunity-level gene bank for ex-situconservation of locally adapted cropvarieties and their wild relatives. Theproject uses documentation softwaredeveloped by IPGRI, thus ensuringinternational comparability of the datacollected on cereals, legumes, vegeta-bles and grasses. A participatory bree-ding programme is planned in orderto involve indigenous and farmingfamilies in on-farm management. AGTZ-financed study on the role ofwomen in the preservation of geneticdiversity underscores how urgent it isto regulate rights of use with regardto both material and knowledge.

A community herbarium serves to identify crop plants.

Deutsche Gesellschaft fürTechnische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) GmbH

Division 45: Rural DevelopmentDag-Hammarskjöld Weg 1-5Postfach 5180D-65726 Eschbornhttp://www.gtz.dehttp://www.gtz.de/agrobiodiv

Beate Weiskopf Tel.: (+496196) 79 1432Fax: (+496196) 79 7173E-Mail: [email protected]

Annette von LossauTel.: (+496196) 79 1467Fax: (+496196) 79 6103E-Mail: [email protected]

Text by: Ute SprengerDesigned by: Wiebke Enwaldt

Photos: Wolfgang Bayer (3, 9/1+2), IPGRI (4/1, 5, 6/1+2, 8/1+2), I.M. Leiva (7/1), M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (4/2, 10/2, 11/1) Paul Thienel (2), Ute Sprenger (Titel, 7/2, 8/3, 10/1, 11/2)

Printed by: Oktoberdruck, Berlin

May 2000

The GTZ ...

is one of the world's largest a service enterprise for development cooperation. Owned bythe Federal Republic of Germany, the organisation implement's the Government's activi-ties in the field of Technical Cooperation. The chief client is the Federal German Ministryfor Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).