2.2 Extent and Determinants of Genetic Extinction
27
vanishing because of the decline in the diversity of species and varieties. The
decrease in supply is the driving force for the development of a new, potentially
large market, in which a former free public good will be traded as a privately
owned, scarce good. But as long as the potential traded products are not welldefined, the property rights and the exclusiveness cannot be guaranteed;
consequently the market cannot function well yet.
In a situation where markets are emerging in a field full of complex problems
and where people with very different levels of knowledge are involved, such
insufficiency does not come unexpectedly (Cowen, 1988). Therefore, as Cansier
points out in regard to all natural resources, there is not a "market failure" of all
necessary allocation mechanisms for PGRF A, but rather a policy and institutional
failure (Cansier, 1993). It is the failure of governments to set up institutional
arrangements within which markets can deliver socially preferred outcomes. The
lack of or the very slow development of those arrangements is reducing the
momentum of the development of the PGRF A market.
Hence, policies and institutions represent the third major group of determinants
having a significant impact on the extent and development of genetic resources
diversity. Incomplete information and the uncertainty of the effects of PGRF A
loss on global welfare as well as the costs of such loss handicap an economically
efficient approach to diversity conservation. Rent seeking and the distortion of
economic incentives are further points where policies determine the diversity of
PGRF A. Policy support of modem varieties through governmental price control
or subsidies for seed of modem varieties, promotion of fertilizer and pesticides
will influence farmers' decisions lO . Legislation to protect and guarantee the
uniformity, distinction, and genetically stability of seed)), i.e., certified seed, is at
the same time hampering the trade and maintenance of old cultivars and farmers'
varieties. Furthermore, the quality of political coordination, e.g., between
countries of similar PGRF A diversity and with a similar availability of genetically
coded information, determines the support of conservation efforts on national and
international level.
As Swanson (1996 ) highlights, the changes in the insurance strategy determine
the level of diversity as well. Because of changes in the insurance policies for
farmers, the importance of diversity of PGRF A in the field has declined in favor
of other insurance strategies. Today, farmers are taking advantage of monetary
insurance, non-agricultural income, family relations, and national and
international aid assistance. Crop insurance schemes are a well-established means
of protection against crop losses in many developed countries, and, increasingly,
in many developing countries as well. Governments provide public insurance
systems which include cover against losses due to pests and diseases, as for
instance India, the Philippines, Cyprus and Venezuela (Roberts and Dick, 1991).
10 In Africa, the replacement of traditional agricultural practices by modem practices is
common, as is policy support of high-yielding varieties to boost agricultural production
(Information from Country Reports).
II See UPOV, 1992.
27
vanishing because of the decline in the diversity of species and varieties. The
decrease in supply is the driving force for the development of a new, potentially
large market, in which a former free public good will be traded as a privately
owned, scarce good. But as long as the potential traded products are not welldefined, the property rights and the exclusiveness cannot be guaranteed;
consequently the market cannot function well yet.
In a situation where markets are emerging in a field full of complex problems
and where people with very different levels of knowledge are involved, such
insufficiency does not come unexpectedly (Cowen, 1988). Therefore, as Cansier
points out in regard to all natural resources, there is not a "market failure" of all
necessary allocation mechanisms for PGRF A, but rather a policy and institutional
failure (Cansier, 1993). It is the failure of governments to set up institutional
arrangements within which markets can deliver socially preferred outcomes. The
lack of or the very slow development of those arrangements is reducing the
momentum of the development of the PGRF A market.
Hence, policies and institutions represent the third major group of determinants
having a significant impact on the extent and development of genetic resources
diversity. Incomplete information and the uncertainty of the effects of PGRF A
loss on global welfare as well as the costs of such loss handicap an economically
efficient approach to diversity conservation. Rent seeking and the distortion of
economic incentives are further points where policies determine the diversity of
PGRF A. Policy support of modem varieties through governmental price control
or subsidies for seed of modem varieties, promotion of fertilizer and pesticides
will influence farmers' decisions lO . Legislation to protect and guarantee the
uniformity, distinction, and genetically stability of seed)), i.e., certified seed, is at
the same time hampering the trade and maintenance of old cultivars and farmers'
varieties. Furthermore, the quality of political coordination, e.g., between
countries of similar PGRF A diversity and with a similar availability of genetically
coded information, determines the support of conservation efforts on national and
international level.
As Swanson (1996 ) highlights, the changes in the insurance strategy determine
the level of diversity as well. Because of changes in the insurance policies for
farmers, the importance of diversity of PGRF A in the field has declined in favor
of other insurance strategies. Today, farmers are taking advantage of monetary
insurance, non-agricultural income, family relations, and national and
international aid assistance. Crop insurance schemes are a well-established means
of protection against crop losses in many developed countries, and, increasingly,
in many developing countries as well. Governments provide public insurance
systems which include cover against losses due to pests and diseases, as for
instance India, the Philippines, Cyprus and Venezuela (Roberts and Dick, 1991).
10 In Africa, the replacement of traditional agricultural practices by modem practices is
common, as is policy support of high-yielding varieties to boost agricultural production
(Information from Country Reports).
II See UPOV, 1992.