Asian Preparatory Workshop on COP/MOP 5 in Hanoi

The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (CPB) addresses the transboundary movement of living modified organisms (LMOs) resulting from modern biotechnology. In an effort to raise awareness on the background of these substantive issues and to facilitate preparation for MOP 5, the Vietnam Environment Administration (VEA) of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) of Vietnam, the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri‐biotech Applications (ISAAA) and the Program for Biosafety Systems of the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) have put together an Asian Regional Workshop on the Cartagena Protocol for Biosafety in Daewoo Hotel, Hanoi, Vietnam on Sept 7-8, 2010.

Experts on the CPB from Asia and the United States were invited to make presentations and to help Asian countries develop their mutual understanding of the substantive issues being considered for the Fifth COP/MOP, specifically Liability and Redress, the Compact, The Roadmap for Risk Assessment and Compliance with the Protocol. Dr. Piet van den Meer of the Project Research and Regulation Initiative (PRRI) of the Netherlands was the overall facilitator of the workshop.

More than 67 representatives from 11 countries in Asia participated in the workshop. The participants all agreed that the Workshop was an eye-opener for some and a review for the others. They also agreed that there is a need for continuing education on the basics of biotechnology, biosafety, biodiversity, and how to prepare, formulate, and implement biosafety and biodiversity guidelines. Among the recommendations reached were: to study the document on Strategic Plan for the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety 2011-2020, to repeat the consultation before every COP/MOP, and to identify the needs of the Parties involved and to support each other to improve their capacity.

For details of the workshop contact Dr. Rhodora R. Aldemita of ISAAA SEAsia Center at: r.aldemita@isaaa.org.