The highly problematic new Plant Improvement Act 2018 (PIA) and Plant Breeder’s Rights Act 2018 (PBR), approved by Parliament last year, have been signed into law this March by the President, replacing the 1976 versions. Regulations are currently being drafted to bring these Acts fully into effect. The framing and scope of these Acts form part of the architecture that reinforces historically unequal seed, agricultural and food systems, and strengthens the power of large-scale commercial breeders. Thus, we have called for specific exemptions to protect and support the rights of smallholder farmers and their farming systems.

During the stakeholder consultation phases, the African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) and networks of farmer associations and other civil society organisations (CSOs) raised concerns with government, at national and provincial levels. Some provincial governments did reject the PBR Bill but these rejections were overridden at parliamentary level by a problematic and skewed voting system and these Bills were passed in October 2018.