Plant Breeders’ Rights also called Plant Variety Protection (PVP), is a form of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs). It is an exclusive right granted to breeders of new varieties to exploit their varieties and has features that are in common with patents for industrial inventions. Both forms of protection grant to their holders a form of exclusive right to pursue innovative activity.
The Malaysian government has realized the importance of PVP for the development of the country. Malaysia, a member of World Trade Organization (WTO) and a signatory to the TRIPS Agreement, which under Article 27.3 (b), stipulates that member countries shall provide for the protection of plant varieties by a patent or by an effective sui generis system or by any combination thereof. As such, Malaysia is able to fulfill its obligation of Article 27.3 (b) for the TRIPS Agreement with the introduction of the PVP legislation.
The Department of Agriculture (DOA) has been registering fruit clones since the early 1930’s and was officially called as the National Registrar of Varieties in 1994 by the Ministry of Agriculture. The responsibility in implementing the PNPV Act 2004 which was gazetted in 25 April 2004 has been entrusted to DOA Malaysia. The implementation of PNVP Act 2004 started in 20 October 2008 after the protection of New Plant Varieties Regulations and Administrative Guidelines on Application and Registration of New Varieties of Plants 2008 were developed.
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