Pakistan revised its patent laws in 2000 to comply with the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (‘TRIPS Agreement’), but it did not include plant variety protection laws. Intellectual property laws for plant breeders are an essential requirement for MNCs to invest in seed production and agriculture, and prior to the PBR Act 2016, there was a dire need for such legislation in the country.
The Plant Breeders' Rights Act, 2016 (‘Act’) was passed on 5 December 2016 and grants plant breeders the authority to own the rights to cultivate and distribute new, genetically specific, and distinct seed varieties, while also safeguarding the rights of small-scale farmers and farming enterprises.
Sustainable growth of the food and agriculture industry is a key factor in determining national food security. There are concerns that the rights of farmers may be infringed by the Act if big MNCs own exclusive rights to certain seed varieties as small-scale farmers may not be able to use those seeds to conduct business.
According to Raja Mujeeb from the Pakistan Kisaan Mazdoor Tehreek (PKMT), the Act deprives indigenous farmers of their centuries-old rights to use, exchange, and trade seed varieties within the community. While the idea of preserving age-old farming traditions is essential, agriculture in Pakistan is in need of investment, growth, development, and technological advancements.
The unprecedented 2022 floods resulted in a significant reduction and unfortunate devastation of agricultural yield, particularly for cotton. The projected yield of 9 million bales reduced to a mere 4.76 million. An expert from Arid Agriculture University (AAU) in Rawalpindi explained that Pakistan’s cotton yield has been hampered by climate change and pest attacks, but most importantly by a lack of certified, registered seed varieties which are modified to be climate and pest resilient.
A report by the State Bank titled ‘Investigating Pakistan’s Seed Industry Dynamics’ explains that a major reason MNCs such as Monsanto and Syngenta do not invest in seed production in Pakistan is the lack of intellectual property rights.
In India, MNCs got encouragement to enter the seed market with the protection of intellectual property rights. Monsanto, the world leader in Bt cotton, partnered with a local firm, Mahyco, to introduce Bt cotton technology in India in 2002. This revolutionized the seed industry in India, resulting in a tripling of cotton production from 2.3 to 6.1 million tonnes, a 40 percent decrease in pesticide usage, and an increase in income for 5 million cotton farmers by USD 100 to 300 per hectare. The exports of cotton amounted to USD 3.5 billion.
Prior to the Act, 74 countries, excluding Pakistan, had plant breeder protection laws. This resulted in a lack of foreign investment in Pakistan’s agricultural industry. The Act promotes larger investments in this sector by providing intellectual property protection for seed varieties, which can eventually result in more modern technology, research-based institutions, greater yield, and ultimately more exports.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the introduction of new plant varieties in Pakistan has bolstered agricultural productivity. The introduction of a new wheat variety called ‘Pakhtunkhwa-2013’ increased yield by 35 percent compared to older varieties. According to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, the country's exports of agricultural products rose from $4.4 billion in 2015–16 to $5.8 billion in 2020–21.
Besides empowering plant breeders with rights, the Act safeguards the rights of farmers and protects the growth and development of traditional crops. It recognizes the rights of farmers to save, use, exchange, and sell seeds from protected varieties for their own use, subject to certain conditions and safeguards to ensure that the use of protected varieties does not infringe upon the rights of plant breeders.
In addition, the Act promotes sustainable use of plant genetic resources, including measures to promote the exchange of genetic resources, encourage the use of traditional varieties, and promote the participation of local communities in the management of plant genetic resources.
The Act also provides for compulsory licensing of protected varieties in certain circumstances, such as when the plant breeder fails to make the protected variety available to the public on reasonable terms, or when there is a national emergency that may require an increased agricultural output. The intended purpose of this is to ensure that protected varieties are available to farmers and researchers regardless of the plant breeder’s willingness to provide them.
Despite reasonable criticism and resistance by PKMT and small-scale farmers in general, the Act provides a legal framework that has the potential to attract much-needed investment in agricultural development for an agriculture-centric country. By doing so, it could significantly bolster the nation's economy and reap dividends for stakeholders. If properly enforce, the Act may draw investments in seed research and development akin to what we saw in India, presenting Pakistan with a golden opportunity to address food insecurity and enhance its export potential.
Writer: Sahar Iqbal
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