{"id":60020,"date":"2025-11-27T20:11:05","date_gmt":"2025-11-27T14:41:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=60020"},"modified":"2025-11-28T13:41:33","modified_gmt":"2025-11-28T08:11:33","slug":"digital-genetics-threatens-seed-sovereignty-and-farmers-rights","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/27-11-2025\/digital-genetics-threatens-seed-sovereignty-and-farmers-rights","title":{"rendered":"Digital Genetics Threatens Seed Sovereignty and Farmers\u2019 Rights"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS3\/Science and Technology<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>In News<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The use of <strong>Digital Sequence Information (DSI)<\/strong> is a major point of contention at the 11th session of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) in Lima (Peru).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Digital Sequence Information (DSI)&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It refers to genetic data derived from DNA, RNA, or proteins that are stored, shared, and analyzed digitally.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It enables genome sequencing, bioinformatics, synthetic biology, and precision medicine, allowing researchers to study biodiversity without physically accessing biological samples.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Applications&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It facilitates genome mapping, drug discovery, and agricultural innovation.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It Helps track pathogens (e.g., COVID-19 genome sequencing).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It supports crop improvement and resilience through genome editing.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It Assists in biodiversity monitoring and species preservation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Issues and Concerns<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Many countries fear that corporations use <strong>DSI to bypass benefit-sharing<\/strong> <strong>obligations<\/strong> under treaties like the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/19-12-2022\/convention-on-biological-diversity-cbd\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/19-12-2022\/convention-on-biological-diversity-cbd\">Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>UN experts warn that <strong>DSI could undermine farmers\u2019 rights,<\/strong> as companies claim intellectual property over digital genetic data without compensating source communities.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Current treaties (CBD, Nagoya Protocol, ITPGRFA) struggle to address digital data, which is easily shared across borders.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Treaty\u2019s Multilateral System (MLS) has facilitated exchanges of millions of plant genetic resources, but benefit-sharing to farmers has been minimal.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Concentration of genomic databases in a few countries or<strong> corporations raises concerns of unequal access.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Way Ahead&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Digital Sequence Information (DSI) presents both opportunities and challenges, driving scientific progress while raising concerns of equity and sovereignty.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>There is a need to&nbsp; balance open access with fair benefit-sharing through inclusive governance under international treaties, building genomic infrastructure in developing nations, and ensuring recognition for communities that provide genetic resources.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>For biodiversity-rich countries like India, clear national policies linking DSI use with farmers\u2019 rights and conservation are vital, while global cooperation through a multilateral mechanism is essential to prevent monopolization and ensure DSI contributes to sustainable development.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Source :<a href=\"https:\/\/www.downtoearth.org.in\/food\/digital-genetics-threatens-seed-sovereignty-and-farmers-rights-un-rapporteur-cautions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">DTE<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><strong>In News<\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">The use of Digital Sequence Information (DSI) is a major point of contention at the 11th session of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) in Lima (Peru).<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong>Digital Sequence Information (DSI)\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">It refers to genetic data derived from DNA, RNA, or proteins that are stored, shared, and analyzed digitally.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">It enables genome sequencing, bioinformatics, synthetic biology, and precision medicine, allowing researchers to study biodiversity without physically accessing biological samples.<\/li>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/27-11-2025\/digital-genetics-threatens-seed-sovereignty-and-farmers-rights\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read\u00a0More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-60020","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60020","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=60020"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60020\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":60052,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/60020\/revisions\/60052"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60020"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=60020"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=60020"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}