Kenya Showcases Leadership at International Seminar on Plant Variety Protection

A stronger, more resilient agricultural sector for Kenya is on the horizon, as Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KEPHIS) continues to champion the adoption of plant variety protection (PVP) systems that drive innovation, food security, and economic growth. By protecting the rights of breeders and encouraging investment in new plant varieties, PVP ensures that Kenyan farmers gain access to improved seeds with higher yields, resistance to pests and diseases, and better adaptation to climate change. This directly supports Kenya’s food security and strengthens the country’s competitiveness in the agriculture-based economy.

This commitment was on display at the International Seminar on the Benefits of UPOV Membership, held on 5th August 2025 in Singapore, where policymakers, breeders, researchers, and industry leaders from across East Asia and beyond gathered to deliberate on the role of PVP in transforming agriculture. The aim of the seminar was to provide policymakers with an opportunity to share experiences on the benefits and challenges of plant variety protection and to inspire progress toward UPOV accession as a pathway to agricultural innovation.

Kenya was prominently represented by the Managing Director of KEPHIS, Prof. Theophilus M. Mutui, who delivered a keynote presentation on Kenya’s experience with PVP and later joined a high-level panel discussion. He emphasized the central role of KEPHIS in implementing and enforcing Kenya’s PVP system, which ensures that the agricultural sector benefits from continuous innovation, greater investment in research, and access to diverse, high-quality seed varieties.

These discussions also tied into Kenya’s Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA), which prioritizes food security, farmer empowerment, and agricultural value chain growth. By strengthening its PVP framework and engaging in international platforms such as this seminar, Kenya is positioning itself as a regional leader in agricultural innovation.

Through its active participation, KEPHIS reaffirmed Kenya’s commitment to regional and global cooperation in advancing plant variety protection ensuring that Kenyan farmers and agribusinesses remain at the forefront of productivity, innovation, and competitiveness in a rapidly changing agricultural landscape.