Sharecroppers ignored in draft law for seeds

Sharecroppers, who make up a majority of farmers in Bangladesh, have been kept out of the purview of a draft law that seeks to give intellectual property rights to plant breeders, and seed production and preservation rights to growers.
The agriculture ministry has prepared the draft law -- Plant Variety and Farmers' Right Protection Act 2014.
Under the proposed law, farmers were defined as people who cultivate their own lands, or who employ others and grow crops under their supervision.
But sharecroppers, who are engaged in farming by mainly renting lands, have been left out of the definition.
It means that 86 lakh out of 1.48 crore farmers will be deprived of the right to produce, save and exchange seeds of protected or patented crop varieties unless they are recognised as farmers by the law.
"It appears that only land owners will get benefit as farmers. But tenants or those who grow crops by leasing lands account for nearly 60 percent of farm households. It is illogical to keep them out of the definition of farmers," said Mahabub Hossain, an economist.
Currently, 58 percent of farmers cultivate rented lands, up from 44 percent in 1988, according to a study by Hossain and Abdul Bayes, an economics professor at Jahangirnagar University.
Land area operated under tenancy contracts has increased to 42 percent of total cultivated lands in 2013, from 23 percent two and a half decades ago, the study shows.
The study points to rapid rural-urban migration for rising absenteeism in landownership and the rent-out system.
Such a law is necessary to protect traditional plant genetic resources so that Bangladesh can claim its rights to these traditional varieties, such as Kataribhog rice, said Hossain, also a former director general of Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies.
The agriculture ministry frames the legislation in line with Bangladesh's obligation to protect intellectual property rights under World Trade Organisation's Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement and the International Convention on Biological Diversity.
Bangladesh, as a least developed country, enjoys waivers from obligations from the TRIPS agreement till July 2021.

The draft law aims to encourage research and investment in plant breeding for increased food production for the growing population.
At the same time, it seeks to protect farmers' plant genetic resources and the misuse of traditional knowledge in breeding and development of plant varieties by others.
Earlier, the agriculture ministry sought opinions on the draft, which is almost at its final stages, by posting it on its website. Responses to the draft were lukewarm, according to insiders.
Anwar Faruque, director general of the seed wing of the agriculture ministry, said tenant farmers were not left out willingly from the draft. "We will incorporate them in the definition of farmers," he told The Daily Star by phone, adding that the bill may be placed in parliament by December.
As per the draft, a Plant Variety and Farmers' Rights Protection Authority will be established to give registration and licences in favour of breeders for newly developed plant varieties, he added.
These new varieties will be termed as protected varieties and breeders will get exclusive rights to commercial use of seeds of that variety. None will be able to produce, reproduce, sell and market the seeds of the protected varieties without authorisation from the breeder, according to the draft.
The draft law proposes 15 years to 20 years of protection rights to breeders of various types of plants, but the government in certain cases will be able to limit breeders' rights. The draft says farmers, without commercial purposes, will be able to produce, preserve, use, exchange and sell seeds of protected varieties.
It also proposes that farmers will have the right to protect traditional knowledge regarding plant genetic resources and the right to get benefit if anyone uses plant genetic resources. A gene fund will also be created to conserve genetic resources, according to the draft.
"We will be able to create a national inventory of our genetic resources after the passage of the law and protect our local varieties and traditional knowledge," said Md Abdur Razzaque, a former executive chairman of Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council.
Recognition to innovation will facilitate creation of a competitive environment, he added. Breeders will be encouraged to develop new varieties because of intellectual property rights; investment will also rise, he said.