Title: Material Transfer Agreements on Teff and Vernonia– Ethiopian Plant Genetic Resources

Abstract

Humans require plant resources to satisfy their basic needs for clothing, food, medicines, shelter, and so on. In order to conserve and sustain the use of these resources, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and the FAO International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture have been adopted as international measures, and the African Union's Model Law has been adopted as a regional measure, to provide legal frameworks for how these resources are to be accessed and how the benefits obtained from their use should be allocated. As a signatory to the CBD, Ethiopia issued its Access and Benefit Sharing law in 2006. Ethiopia has signed material transfer agreements on teff (gluten free and nutritious) and vernonia (the green chemical plant of the 21 st Century) with two European companies. This article discusses and seeks to interpret the terms of the agreements on teff and vernonia. Furthermore, it analyzes the implications of the terms of the agreements for the realization of the objectives of the CBD (e.g. access, benefit sharing and conservation).