AATF Inaugural Report - African Agricultural Technology Foundation

A New Bridge to Sustainable Agricultural Development in Africa
Managing Intellectual Property (IP)
to Benefit the Poor
AATF’s work contributes to the development and
delivery of improved technologies to resource-poor
smallholder farmers. Partners in projects coordinated
by the Foundation are committed to sharing
and transferring technology and research products,
both for research and for commercial use for the
benefit of resource-poor farmers.
AATF’s approach to managing intellectual
property (IP) rests on the belief that developing
countries in sub-Saharan Africa must make their
own decisions about which agricultural technologies
are appropriate. This includes whether or not to
promote genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
Such decisions have to be based on national or
regional assessments of the costs, benefits and
social acceptability of each technology. In the case
of GMOs, AATF’s position is that the countries into
which they are licensed must have the capacity to
manage their safe development and use, through
effective national biosafety regulations and other
mechanisms.
The Foundation’s IP policy ensures that knowledge
and products resulting from AATF activities
will be used for the maximum public benefit of
resource-poor smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan
Africa. Our policy stresses the responsible use of IP
owned by others, in a manner that respects their
rights. In the acquisition and management of thirdparty
IP, we abide by all relevant international laws
and treaties, as well as national laws in the countries
in which AATF operates. Finally, AATF is guided by its
core values of accessibility, accountability, credibility,
dedication, transparency and trustworthiness.
AATF’s Stewardship Role
A number of private, public and civil society
organisations have pledged to support the AATF
approach to technology transfer. It is imperative
that the Foundation preserves the confidence of
these stakeholders through effective leadership
and responsible IP management.
As a “responsible party,” AATF guarantees
that proprietary technology is properly acquired
and used. We start by conducting IP audits to
identify any restraints associated with the use or
distribution of products or processes incorporating
specific proprietary technologies. We always
endeavour to develop and deploy products that
are “free and clear” of restrictions imposed by
third-party IP rights. If not free and clear, we make
every effort to reveal any restrictions that might
apply and, where possible, obtain any required
permissions.
AATF strives to preserve the integrity of confidential
information controlled by the IP rights of
others. We include a confidentiality clause in all
employment contracts and stress compliance with
this clause as a condition of continued employment.
We also strongly advocate that project
partners require all personnel associated with
our projects to sign confidentiality agreements.
The Foundation routinely enters into non-disclosure
agreements with collaborators, not only to
facilitate the free exchange of information and
materials, including IP, but also to preserve the
integrity of confidential information at the institutional
level.
Responsible IP management requires that all
ownership rights are defined at the start of any
project. The ownership rights of AATF and those
who provide technologies are negotiated on
a project-by-project basis. Our policy is that IP
rights should be shared equitably among project
partners, taking into consideration: the original
intellectual contributions of each; the specific kind
and character of the IP, materials, research efforts,
and preparatory work done by each collaborator in
14