GLOBAL CROP DIVERSITY TRUST: ESTABLISHMENT

UNCLAS ROME 002427 SIPDIS STATE FOR E, EB, OES/ETC - NEUMANN, EB/TPP/BTT - MALAC, L/OES AND IO/EDA - KOTOK USDA FOR FAS - BRICHEY, LREICH AND RHUGHES AND ARS - BRETTING AND BLALOCK USAID FOR EGAT - SIMMONS, MOORE AND BERTRAM FROM U.S. MISSION TO THE UN AGENCIES IN ROME E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAGR ETRD EAID SENV KIPR AORC FAO IPGRI SUBJECT: GLOBAL CROP DIVERSITY TRUST: ESTABLISHMENT AGREEMENT IS OPEN FOR SIGNATURES REF: ROME 2418 ¶1. Provided below, for the record, is the text of a letter from FAO Director General Jacques Diouf, dated February 13, 2004, inviting member governments to sign the Agreement that establishes the Global Crop Diversity Trust. Signature does not imply any financial commitments to the Trust. Reftel provides further information and comments. ¶2. Begin Text: "The Agreement for the Establishment of the Global Crop Diversity Trust" An international fund to support the conservation of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture is being established by the Food Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO),together with the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI),acting on behalf of the International Agricultural Research Centres of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) -------------- -------------- The Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has the honour to transmit the Agreement for the Establishment of the Global Crop Diversity Trust and its Constitution. FAO, together with the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI),acting on behalf of the International Agricultural Research Centres of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR),is in the process of establishing an international fund to support the conservation of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture. The fund, known as the Global Crop Diversity Trust, will support the upgrading of important collections, help build the capacity of countries to maintain them and will contribute to their long-term maintenance. The Trust will give special attention to supporting national collections maintained by developing countries as well as those held in trust by international organizations for the world community. The Global Crop Diversity Trust is being set up as part of the funding strategy foreseen in Article 18 of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. It will focus its support on the conservation of those crops that are listed in Annex 1 or in Article 15 of the Treaty. While the Trust will be independent, it will maintain strong links to the Treaty and will operate under the policy guidance of the Governing Body of the Treaty. Furthermore, the Executive Board of the Global Crop Diversity Trust will include among its membership four members appointed by the Governing Body of the Treaty as well as one each by the Director-General of FAO and the Chair of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research. The Director-General invites your Government to sign the attached Agreement establishing the Global Crop Diversity Trust as an independent entity under international law. The Constitution of the Trust is annexed to the Establishment Agreement and is an integral part of it. By signing this agreement, your Government will be signalling that it recognizes the Trust as an international entity. Signature does not carry with it any financial or other obligation to support the Trust. The Trust will become a legal entity upon the signature of the seventh Member, as long as at least four are developing countries and providing they are from at least five of the regions recognized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. The Director-General of the FAO is the depositary of this Agreement. It will be open for signature at FAO Headquarters in Rome until 31 March 2006. Countries that wish to accede to the Trust after this date will be able to deposit their instruments of accession with FAO. Through signing this Agreement, your country will become party to establishing a very important international funding mechanism that aims to provide stable and sustainable financial support for the world's most important germplasm collections. Ensuring these important materials are not lost is a vital contribution to future food security and the development of sustainable agriculture. The Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations looks forward to receiving soon your signature on the attached document so that the Global Crop Diversity Trust will become a legally constituted international entity at the earliest possible date. End text. Hall NNNN 2004ROME02427 - Classification: UNCLASSIFIED