WFO highlights farmers’ role in global technology transfer and advocates for a farmer-centric trading system at WTO’s 2nd thematic session on Transfer of Technology.
On September 24, Mr Brodie Berrigan, Facilitator of the WFO Working Group on International Trade from the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA-FCA), Prof Kouassi Sébastino Da Costa from the Association Nationale des Semenciers de Côte d’Ivoire (ANASEMCI), and Mr Francois Rossouw from the Southern African Agri Initiative (SAAI), represented the World Farmers’ Organisation (WFO) in a second thematic session on Transfer of Technology, organised by the World Trade Organization (WTO) in the margins of the September meeting of the WTO Committee on Agriculture.
Building on Mr Berrigan’s contribution to the first thematic session on the Transfer of Technology, which focused on a farmer-driven innovation policy framework, Mr Rossouw and Prof Da Costa shared practical experiences from their respective countries, South Africa and Côte D’Ivoire, highlighting the real-world impact of technology transfer in improving agricultural practices and productivity.
Mr Rossouw discussed the evolving role of agricultural extension by presenting AI Farmer, a new WhatsApp-based platform developed by SAAI to leverage artificial intelligence in supporting African farmers with better decision-making. He emphasised that thanks to this app, intellectual property remains within the farming community. Mr Rossouw also highlighted the importance of democratising knowledge, stating, “AI now allows us to break down barriers, making vital agricultural knowledge accessible to all farmers, regardless of their locations.”
Following Mr Rossouw’s presentation, Prof Da Costa provided insights into innovation in Côte d’Ivoire’s seed sector. He outlined the key challenges and opportunities in the country’s agricultural sector, highlighting the importance of technology transfer and capacity building to adopt scientific and technological innovations. Prof Da Costa also emphasised the role of improving agricultural productivity through certified seeds, enhancing genetic material, and establishing regulatory frameworks that support the introduction and use of improved seed varieties.
In his final remarks, Mr Berrigan reflected on the presentations made by the two fellow WFO representatives, emphasising that innovation and technology transfer are being applied uniquely across different contexts in the agricultural sector worldwide, demonstrating that there is no one-size-fits-all approach. He underlined the importance of creating enabling conditions tailored to farmers’ needs and stressed the need to revisit the multilateral trade approach from the agricultural perspective, focusing on three key areas:
- Investment in capacity-building;
- Investment in physical and digital infrastructure;
- Development of international standards to break down non-tariff barriers to trade impacting farmers unfairly.
Farmers play a vital role in shaping the future of agricultural trade and their active engagement in WTO discussions and decision-making is not just important but essential. Detailed policy recommendations are outlined in the WFO Policy on International Trade.