Developing countries are being urged to strengthen

intellectual property rights (IPRs) to foster innovation

and expand trade. The field of agriculture is no

exception, and the Agreement on Trade-Related

Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) requires

all World Trade Organization (WTO) members to provide

either patent or sui generis protection for plant

varieties. Only a few industrialized countries use

patent systems for plant varieties, and developing

countries will almost certainly look towards sui generis

options for plant variety protection (PVP) to meet

their TRIPS obligations.