ISAAA Statement: Integration under the convention and its protocol with respect to biosafety related provisions

I speak on behalf of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications. ISAAA is committed to the Sustainable Development Goals where modern biotechnology has vast potential towards their achievement.

Underscoring the need to protect and safeguard food production, health and wellbeing, ISAAA calls upon the parties to develop mechanism to enhance the integration under the Convention and its Protocols with respect to provisions related to biosafety, access and benefit-sharing, liability and redress and Article 8(j) related to indigenous peoples and local communities.

Furthermore, ISAAA believes the need for integration of three protocols with convention is so crucial in the wake of rapid advancement in biology and new innovations including Synbio, gene drive and new breeding techniques. These cutting edge biological innovations will address the insurmountable challenges posed by climate change in agriculture, health and environment and will impact the wellbeing of local communities, indigenous people, and the society at large

Therefore, ISAAA urges parties of the convention to bridge the differences, embrace technological innovations and ensure that the convention and the protocol are complementary to each other rather than contradictory we are witnessing today.

Bhagirath Choudhary
Director, South Asia Biotechnology Centre