Seed without Borders

Seed without Borders

Subject: Environment

Section: Judiciary

Context:

• A two-day workshop on “Seeds Without Borders” was held in Thimphu, Bhutan.

Details:

• Nine countries from Asia and the Pacific signed an agreement to strengthen the region’s seed sector.

Seed without Borders (SwB):

• SwB is a regional seed policy agreement that speeds up the distribution of modern rice varieties across countries in Asia, particularly in South and Southeast Asia.
• In 2014, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) facilitated the agreement signed by India, Bangladesh and Nepal.
• Member countries include: India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Fiji (first pacific nation to join it).
• Member countries signed the Thimpu Protocol of Discussion (2022) that would help improve the process of implementation of the previous agreements under Seeds Without Borders.
• Thimphu protocol of Discussion intends to add roots, tuber crops, and fruit crops to the current ones covered by the agreement such as rice and other cereals, pulses, oil seeds, vegetables, sugarcane and fiber crops.
• Donors to the SwB include: The Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the World Bank, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, Syngenta Foundation, Asian Development Bank (ADB), ADBi, and the SAARC Development Fund.

Source: IRRI