A Regional Training on Plant Variety Protection (PVP) systems for English-speaking countries began on the 6th of April 2022 in Accra, Ghana. Organized by the West Africa Agricultural Research and Development (CORAF), the training session will run until the 8th of april.

In his opening remarks, the Representative of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture of Ghana, Mr. George PRAH, welcomed all the participants and emphasized the need for breeders to submit their varieties for registration.

On behalf of the African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI), Mrs Mercy Asima, Legal Counsel and Head of International Cooperation, presented the OAPI Protocol on the protection of Plant Varieties (Annex X) of the revised Bangui Agreement, with an overview of the OAPI system in general.

There were also different presentations on the introduction of PVP system, the benefits of UPOV PVP system and UPOV convention, the Arusha Protocol, the PVP Act and it's potential for Agricultural transformation in Nigeria, Private Seed Industry perspective and others.