On the occasion of the 15^th anniversary of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) and the 10^th anniversary of its Benefit Sharing Fund, H.E. Ambassador Jan Tombiński delivered a speech during the side event organised on the impacts of the Benefit-Sharing Fund (BSF).   The Ambassador highlighted the various tributes to the global consensus on the importance of plant biodiversity for preserving life on our planet and ensuring food security around the world.  Since its establishment, ten years ago, the BSF has supported 80 projects in 67 developing countries, reaching around 1 million small scale farmers.  Under the “Leading the Field for Food Security & Climate Change Adaptation” project, the EU supported farmers in Africa and elsewhere to cope with the impact of climate change through special seed projects. A young woman beneficiary farmer from Kenya, Evalyne Adhiambo Okoth, reported on the importance of the seeds received from local gene banks under the ITPGRFA Benefit Sharing fund.  In Kenya and Tanzania the EU co-funded projects have provided local farmers with improved varieties of sorghum, millet and beans. The project positively impacted the livelihoods of local communities in terms of increased resilience and pest control, increase in yields and dietary diversification. 

"Happy farmers make happy Nations, and happy Nations make a peaceful world" said Ms Evalyne Adhiambo Okoth

http://www.fao.org/plant-treaty/en/

Main image: @FAO International Treaty on PGRFA