PublicPrivate Partnerships in Agricultural Biotechnology for the Developing World: Sounds Like a Goo

1
Public-Private Partnerships in Agricultural
Biotechnology for the Developing World Sounds
Like a Good Idea, but.

• Donald Danforth Plant Science Center
• April 28, 2005
• Ambassador Cynthia P. Schneider
• Georgetown University

2
Rockefeller Funded Project

• Title Ethics Meets the Marketplace Towards a
  Model Framework Harnessing the Potential of the
  Life Sciences to Improve Agriculture and Animal
  Agriculture in the Developing World
• Goals Develop/Identify model frameworks to adapt
  life science-based innovations to agriculture in
  developing world
• Identify ethical and practical guidelines,
  drawing as much as possible from concrete
  examples
• Identify/describe Best (and Worst) Practices in
  PPPs for agricultural biotechnology for
  developing world
• Use lessons learned from other fields health
  PPPs, microcredit

3
Underlying Assumptions

• Life science based innovations in agriculture
  hold promise for developing world
• To be successful, PPPs should be integral to
  strategic plan of private partner
• If so, then PPPs can contribute to sustainable
  agriculture, poverty reduction, and improved
  health and nutrition in developing world
• Those goals can be compatible with developing or
  expanding a market for private partner
• One size does not fit all for agbiotech PPPs
• Different environments in developing world
  require different approaches Brazil, Mexico or
  South Africa compared to Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania

4
Preliminary Conclusions Good News

• There are examples of successful ongoing projects
  
• There are creative mechanisms in development to
  facilitate PPPs
• Excellent research ongoing in national labs in
  developing world countries
• Fledgling seed industries have potential to
  market new products from national labs

5
Preliminary Conclusions Bad News

• Lack of funds, regulatory structure,
  infrastructure to translate research into
  products
• Multi- nationals not likely to fill in gap,
  unless would fit long term strategy and benefit
  profitable markets (i.e. drought resistance)
• Regulatory approval either too costly or
  underdeveloped and holding up distribution
• Liability scares industry away from PPPs
• Local private sector undeveloped in much of
  sub-Saharan Africa

6
PPPs in Practice

• Tissue culture bananas Africa Harvest, KARI, Du
  Roi (South African company ) in partnership with
  Genetic Technologies Limited, Nairobi (Suresh
  Patel) , ISAAA, ABSF (for public perception),
  Technoserve (US NOGO, marketing), DuPont
  (funding)
• GTL only tissue culture lab in Kenya, for
  profit, expanding to 5 nurseries for countrywide
  distribution
• Transport of seedlings costs more than seedlings
  themselves
• Sees more potential in Tanzania than in Kenya
  because more large landowners
• In Uganda, tissue culture lab Agro-Genetic
  Technologies, Ltd., Erostus Nsubuga. Tissue
  culture without genetic engineering does not
  require regulation.

7
PPPs in Practice

• Fast growing, disease resistant eucalyptus trees
  (tissue culture)
• Africa Harvest, Monti (South African company),
  Gatsby Trust.
• Technology donation by Monti advantage to
  company test response of trees to different
  climate
• Gatsby funded start up costs
• Benefits more firewood, less time looking for
  firewood, commercial wood, reforestation

8
ILRI East Coast Fever Vaccine

• Partners TIGR, Wellcome Trust, DFID, CGIAR,
  KARI, University of Victoria, British Columbia,
  Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Kenyan
  DVS, Merial (private partner)
• ECF is leading cause of death for cattle in
  sub-Saharan Africa
• 17 years, 35 million (25 million research 10
  million development)
• Annual losses due to East Coast Fever - 300
  million
• Status in clinical trials

9
(Potential) Success Stories

• AATF African Agricultural Technology Foundation
  broker between public and private sector
• Facilitates royalty free transfers of IP
• Oversees and assists with funding of regulatory
  approval of public sector products
• Goal to make innovative technologies available
  to small scale farmer
• Problem lack of liability coverage

10
AATF Projects

• Striga free maize
• AATF, CIMMYT, KARI, BASF -- goal seed of
  herbicide-resistant maize (gene owned by BASF,
  adapted by CIMMYT) that is coated with BASF
  herbicide for control of Striga. AATF to pay for
  regulatory approval. At issue slow release
  technology for Striga control herbicide. CYMMET
  owns significant share BASF tying access to slow
  release to donation of gene.

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Other AATF Projects

• IRMA insect resistant maize for Africa
• Partners AATF, KARI, CIMMYT, Syngenta Foundation
• Vitamin A enhancement in Maize Harvest Plus
  consortium CIMMYT, IFPRI, IITA, Univ. of
  Illinois, Iowa State Univ., Wageningen Univ.,
  Monsanto
• Network for Genetic Improvement of Cowpea for
  Africa (Purdue, Univ. of Zimbabwe, IITA, Univ of
  California, Riverside, Michigan State, UVa.,
  Charlottesville Kirkhouse Trust Monsanto)

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Potential Successes

• Virus-resistant sweet potato
• Partnership with Africa Harvest, Monsanto, KARI,
  KEPHIS
• Developed capacity for KEPHIS
• Problems different standards for public GM
  products. When 1st generation doesnt work,
  project dismissed.
• Fodder for anti-GMO groups
• William Moar, Univ. of Alabama, Auburn working
  on adapting Bt for sweet potato in Uganda

13
Potential New Model Drought Tolerant Crop
Initiative

• Drought resistance benefits both developed and
  developing world
• Multiple private players developing technology
• Could technology for developing world crops be
  carved out and donated?
• Could this work as a coalition of private
  companies and public sector entities, in model of
  health coalitions?
• Initial public sector partners USAID,
  Rockefeller, Partnership to Cut Hunger in Africa,
  CGIAR, Winrock International

14
Key Problems

• Lack of private sector biotech to translate
  products that come out of KARI/NARO
• New seed companies, but only one tissue culture
  company each in Kenya and Uganda
• Lack of regulatory and/or biosafety capacity
• Confusion about risks and benefits of
  biotechnology in Africa
• Too little action and too much talk

15
Other Problems

• Liability biggest deterrent for private sector
• Potential solutions
• Create an insurance fund that is US
  government-backed modeled after the Federal
  indemnity for the Arts and Humanities
• Provide government backed insurance for
  humanitarian purposes.
• Lack of regulatory or biosafety capacity makes
  introduction of GMOs impossible in some countries
  Uganda and costly and difficult in others --
  Kenya

16
Comparison with Health PD PPPs

• Different
• Need not perceived as being as urgent
• Solutions more long term and systemic in
  agriculture
• Pharma-Planta coalition may bridge the gap (30
  orgs, 11 EU countries, South Africa) producing
  biopharmaceuticals in and for developing world

• Similar
• Private sector investment in research for
  developing world can benefit research for
  commercial products
• Lack of local PPPs in health also
• Good PR

17
Funding Health PD PPPs

• Developing world invests 2.5 billion in health
  care research
• All the PD PPPs together only invest 200
  million
• Should be able to capture more of investment for
  solutions to health care problems
• Lack of local translationsal private sector

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How to Support Local Private Sector Growth in
Developing World ?

• Need to fund and create new sector where
  agbiotech research is translated into products
• Could venture capital be raised for this
  purpose?
• African Agricultural Capital new fund
  Rockefeller, Gatsby, private sector (William
  Kalema, Uganda)
• Socially responsible investment companies may
  provide models micro-credit on sector-side
  scale

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Biggest Challenges

• Translation/implementation Gap
• Small to non existent local private sector
• Lack of funds to translate research into products
• Lack of regulatory capacity
• Liability for private sector that donates
  technology
• Lack of Incentive for private sector to donate
  technology
• Lack of market and transportation infrastructure
  for products
• Cultural aversion to investment in agriculture in
  Africa
• Public opinion developing world farmer torn
  between US and EU

20
Eliminating Roadblocks

• US government funded liability coverage for
  humanitarian donation
• Wild card patent equivalent as incentive for
  humanitarian donation
• Coalition of ag companies plus public sector to
  donate major transformative technology, plus
  expertise and training to execute, and rewards
  and incentives for developing countries to
  develop products. Re-invention of failed CBI
  advertising campaign.