About the ABC Database

Objectives - Why a database of public sector biotech R&D capabilities?

The world community faces many dramatic challenges, such as population growth, poverty alleviation, change in diets, move from rural to urban areas, reduction of available arable land and water, environmental stress, climate change, and need for renewable resources. These changes will require among others that agricultural production of food, feed and fibre increases, intensifies and diversifies, which is only possible if farmers have access to a wide range of technologies, including the products of modern biotechnology. Indeed, it is widely recognised that the application of plant biotechnology has the potential to address some of the most intractable challenges facing the plant productivity and nutritional objectives of the Millennium Development Goals.

In this respect, public sector research deserves special attention, because while it is well documented that GM crops are transforming agricultural practices and rural development around the world, it is often overlooked that all of the present generation of GM crop traits under cultivation can be traced back to curiosity-driven discoveries in public sector research institutions. Since those early technological breakthroughs, the post-genomics era has created a massive and continuing surge of new information and techniques that have the potential to transform our ability to manipulate plant structure and function in ways that were hitherto impossible.

Whilst the development of the first generation GM crops was driven by remarkable technological breakthroughs, future generations of GM events will rely more on a fundamental overhaul of how we access, share, disseminate, and apply public sector knowledge.

The ABC - Database aims to facilitate this process. The concept for the database arose through the realisation that there is a general lack of awareness and information amongst stakeholders and the general public on technology needs as well as on available technologies and ongoing capacity building initiatives in the public sector.

The Agricultural Biotechnology Capability Database aims to serve as:

an independent, transparent primary knowledge resource;
a forum that helps ‘learning from others’ and
a forum for informed debate on the role of GM crops in development programs;
a tool to identify critical bottlenecks in product development pipelines and to identify the most important technology disconnects between developing and developed countries;
a resource for scientists to find partners for collaboration and possibly the identification of scientific centres of excellence that could act as focal points for regional and international R&D cooperation networks.

International context

The ABC database is framed within recent calls for initiatives to create better access to knowledge as a prerequisite for scientific capacity building, policy formulation, international cooperation and technology transfer, which include:

The Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (2007): “a further tool that facilitates the transfer of technology relevant to the Convention, and an important element of an enabling environment (for technology transfer) is the “development or strengthening of national, regional and international systems for the gathering and dissemination of relevant information on technology transfer and scientific cooperation, including the establishment of effective networks of electronic databases of relevant technology.”

The African Union-New Economic Partnership for Africa’s Development (AU-NEPAD)(2006) in their report on biotechnology (“Freedom to innovate; Biotechnology in Africa’s development) recognise the isolation of African research from external advances in technology and state:

“One of the major changes in recent development thinking is the realisation that what separates developed and less developed countries is not just a gap in resources, but a gap in knowledge,” and that “Governance structures may need to be realigned to reflect a society’s willingness to explore new forms of knowledge.” The study also states that the present capacity of African research initiatives in modern biotechnology are “…insufficient to stay meaningfully connected to global advances in science and technology and this impairs opportunities to transfer and adapt technology.”

The Commission on Science and Technology for Development of UNCTAD (2004)
In their report on promoting the application of Science and Technology to meet the development goals contained in the Millennium Declaration stress the importance of:

“Improving the policy environment for the application of science and technology to development by identifying the potential risks and benefits of new and emerging technologies.” And “Strengthening basic and applied research in developing countries and international networking.” and “Strengthening technology support institutions and science advisory mechanisms; building human capacity; identifying new technologies and applications; and encouraging international collaboration to support research in neglected fields”.

The Interacademy Council (2004)
In their report “Inventing a better future; a strategy for building worldwide capacities in science and technology” state: “the overarching problem is in the low-income developing world: the vast majority of people in most societies are falling further and further behind in their ability to master the new knowledge and benefit from its fruits in their everyday lives. The inability of most of the developing world to keep pace with the rapid changes occurring elsewhere in the various fields of S&T indicates that current models of technology transfer and international assistance are not working as well as many would have hoped.”

These reports underline the need to revisit current practices and undertake a comprehensive overhaul of the approach to capacity building for biotechnology in the developing world. In particular, it is recognised that it is important to empower scientists locally to better address their own problems and potentialities. The growing sense of cooperation among scientists of different countries and regions is especially important; it makes these ideas and paths much more practical now than ever before.

A participatory approach to construction of the database will engender a strong sense of ownership and commitment that will pave the way for new approaches to international cooperation.

Efforts to improve plant productivity through the application of modern biotechnology are anticipated to play a key role in a world moving rapidly towards the knowledge-based economy of the 21st century. For the rational design of strategies to meet productivity goals there is a need to strengthen domestic research and innovation systems to meet identified needs. The ABC - Database is a first step towards creating an enabling environment that fosters research, cooperation and technology transfer and will comprehensively review and update information on the status of public sector biotechnology R&D pipelines. The concept for the database arose through the realisation that there is a general lack of awareness and information amongst stakeholders on technology needs as well as on available technology and ongoing capacity building initiatives in the public sector. The database will serve to reinforce the fact that public sector R&D initiatives deserve special attention in future programs for development since:

All of the present generation of genetically modified (GM) crop traits under cultivation around the world can be traced back to discoveries in public sector research organisations;
In the developing countries in particular, it is R&D programs in the public sector that support the bulk of new GM crop development despite critical constraints on funding, human resources and access to relevant knowledge arising in more technologically proficient countries;
If plant-based products are to sustain the projected economic and developmental agendas, a constant infusion of new knowledge is required, and the principle source of such knowledge will be fundamental research carried out in the public sector.

In the years to come, the Agricultural Biotechnology Capability Database will serve as:

an independent, transparent primary knowledge resource for science-based decision making;
a focal point for informed debate on the potential of GM crops in programs to alleviate some of the most important developmental challenges we are facing;
a tool to identify critical bottlenecks in product development pipelines and to identify the most important technology disconnects between developing and developed countries;
a resource for scientist finding partners for collaboration and possibly the identification of scientific centres of excellence that could act as focal points for regional and international R&D cooperation networks.

The enormous challenge facing policy makers is to innovate agricultural productivity not only to feed more people, but to do so with less available land, fewer renewable resources, less water and fewer people engaged in primary agriculture. As part of a total solution that involves better market conditions and access to production resources such as high quality seed, biotechnologies that are focussed on smallholder problems, undertaken in an integrated manner with traditional crop research, present a significant opportunity for increasing productivity.

Participatory approaches that embrace biotechnological advances in rural development agendas will aid the cause of food security, public health and economic growth. Through this, environmentally sensitive and socially acceptable means of combating malnutrition, drought, pests and crop diseases will emerge that release farmers from the vicious pesticide treadmill, alleviate degradation of the environment and depletion of natural resources.

This database is a collaborative effort between the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and the Public Research and Regulation Initiative (PRRI). In this effort they are assisted by numerous other initiatives, institutes and organisations (see ‘About us’ for an overview)

Contributors to the database and projected audience

The Agricultural Biotechnology Capability Database is created by public sector scientists for the furtherance of public sector priorities and is a comprehensive collection of all of the applied biotechnology R&D programs around the world. This database is of particular importance as a global resource to document the status of R&D programs in developing countries since here, it is the public sector that is responsible for most of the innovation. Other important programs covered by the database are R&D programs carried out in developed countries, but with a key focus on goals relevant for developing countries.

The database will serve as a central gateway for the exchange of pertinent information such as the opportunities for the transfer and adaptation of technology and the related capacity needs and support available for building or enhancing capacities.

A key feature of the database is that it is a participatory initiative, and thereby strives to be truly representative of all stakeholders’ interests and a reflection of the societal relevance of ongoing endeavours. A participatory approach to construction of the database will engender a strong sense of ownership and commitment that will pave the way for new approaches to international cooperation.

We need your input!

The success of this database depends on the quality of the data provided by public researchers. We need your help to collect, add, and update the data so that the database is as complete and up to date as possible. We invite you to actively participate in this effort which will benefit not only scientists but all stakeholders in the agricultural biotechnology sector.

Developmental Goals

By raising awareness of the capabilities and needs of public sector R&D programs in agricultural biotechnology, the database will create an enabling environment for the implementation of science based policies that foster innovation, cooperation and technology transfer. Through establishing the fact that it is public sector initiatives and public sector genetic resources that underpin some of the most important biotechnology programs of relevance to the developing world.

Immediate Objectives

Develop a platform for establishing the central role of public sector knowledge in future developmental and economic agendas.

It is well documented that GM crops are transforming agricultural practices and rural development around the world, and nowhere more significantly so than in a number of developing countries. Perhaps because of the staggering rate at which this technology was taken up, it is often overlooked that all of the present generation of GM crop traits under cultivation can be traced back to curiosity-driven discoveries in public sector research institutions.

Since those early technological breakthroughs, the post-genomics era has created a massive and continuing surge of new information and techniques that have the potential to transform our ability to manipulate plant structure and function in ways that were hitherto impossible. Indeed, it is widely recognised that the application of plant biotechnology has the potential to address some of the most intractable challenges facing the plant productivity and nutritional objectives of the Millennium Development Goals. Towards these goals, scientists are reporting new “pro-poor” breakthroughs in the improvement of the nutritional quality of staple crops, the ability to engineer resistance to abiotic stresses, and new horizons for plants as factories for vaccines.

At the opposite end of the economic spectrum, in a world rapidly moving towards the knowledge-based economy of the 21st century, innovations in plant biotechnology have the potential to play an increasingly important role in promoting the preservation of biodiversity, and in reducing and reversing the currently unsustainable and environmentally insensitive activities of our agriculture, our industry and our domestic habits.

If plant-based products are to sustain these new economic and developmental agendas, a constant infusion of new knowledge is required, and the principle source of such knowledge is and will be fundamental research carried out in the public sector.

The first challenge is to collate and accurately represent public sector information in ways that maximise its dissemination, acceptability and uptake to the diverse range of stakeholders responsible for the production, evaluation and regulation of products and services that are economically viable, environmentally sustainable, safe and socially acceptable.

The Agricultural Biotechnology Capability Database will go a long way to meeting this challenge for the first time, and will represent a valuable resource for policy makers, investors, industry specialists, scientists and the public.

Building on existing knowledge and responding to calls for action

Around the world, countries differ profoundly in the challenges and opportunities they face, and in the capabilities which they can bring to bear on meeting these. In particular, agriculture for development agendas must to be context specific, reflecting both the broad country type and local conditions. A primary objective is to build on the findings of the IFPRI “Next Harvest” study to leverage the capabilities of public sector R&D activities and genetic resources for GM crop development in future goals for the improvement of plant productivity. The public sector is a competent, but still largely unproven, player for GM crop production in developing countries.

The database will serve as a central gateway for the exchange of pertinent technology-related information to support opportunities for the transfer and adaptation of technology and the related capacity needs and to build or enhance capacities.

The ABC database will establish a comprehensive overview of the existing results and benefits to facilitate an environment for

“learning from others”;
Identifying and assessing technologies that are relevant to the needs and priorities identified by specific countries and;
enabling the identification of priorities for future technology transfer and research cooperation.

Agricultural Biotechnology Capacity Database