Capacity-building

The Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety,

Action Plan

Recalling its decisions BS-I/5 and decision BS-II/3;

Taking note of the report on the progress in, and effectiveness of, the implementation of the Action Plan for Building Capacities for the Effective Implementation of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety contained in the note prepared by the Executive Secretary (UNEP/CBD/BS/COP-MOP/3/4),

Recognizing the need to take further measures to improve the implementation and effectiveness of the Action Plan,

Welcoming the evaluation of the support of the Global Environment Facility for biosafety contained in document UNEP/CBD/BS/COP-MOP/3/INF/12,

Reiterating the importance of capacity-building for the effective implementation of the Protocol and for its continued development,

Recognizing that capacity-building is a complex issue requiring urgent as well as long-term sustained efforts to assist developing country Parties, in particular the least developed and small island developing States among them, as well as Parties with economies in transition to fulfil their obligations under the Protocol,

1. Adopts an updated version of the Action Plan for Building Capacities for the Effective Implementation of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety contained in the annex to this decision, superseding the one adopted in decision BS-I/5, annex I;

2. Invites Parties, other Governments and relevant organizations to implement, as appropriate, the updated Action Plan referred to above;

3. Calls upon Parties, other Governments, intergovernmental organizations, non-governmental organizations and, as appropriate, the private sector to continue extending their cooperation with developing countries , in particular the least developed and small island developing States among them, as well as countries with economies in transition with a view to strengthening biosafety capacity-building programmes taking into account Article 22 of the Protocol on capacity - building and the Action Plan annexed to this decision;

4. Invites the Global Environmental Facility, developed country Parties and Governments, as well as relevant organizations to take into account the updated Action Plan referred to above and increase their financial and technical support to developing countries and countries with economies in transition for its implementation;

5. Decides to conduct further comprehensive reviews of the Action Plan every five years;

6. Invites Parties, other Governments and relevant organizations to provide to the Executive Secretary reports on the progress in, and effectiveness of, their efforts in implementing the Action Plan, at least three months prior to the meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Protocol that will undertake the comprehensive review of the Action Plan in accordance with paragraph 5 above;

7. Urges Parties and other Governments to integrate biosafety in their broader sustainable development strategies and approaches and programmes such as Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers, where available and when scheduled for revision, as well as those related to the goals and objectives agreed upon at major United Nations conferences and summits including those agreed upon at the Millennium Summit that are described as the Millennium Development Goals;

8. Invites developed country Parties and other Governments to include biosafety issues in their development aid policies and strategies, and in their corresponding sectoral and bilateral programmes;

9. Encourages Parties, other Governments and relevant organizations to adopt a long-term perspective in the design and implementation of biosafety capacity-building initiatives, also focusing on building up countries' research capacities and institutional frameworks in order to assess their own needs and possible adverse effects of living modified organisms on the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity, taking also into account risks to human health ;

10. Invites developing country Parties and Parties with economies in transition as well as other Governments to adopt, as appropriate, the following measures with a view to addressing some of the key factors limiting the implementation and effectiveness of the Action Plan at all levels:

a. Promote coordination of donor assistance for biosafety initiatives at the country level;

b. Mobilize funding from a wide range of sources;

c. Provide, where possible, adequate allocations for biosafety capacity-building activities in the national budgets;

d. Coordinate and harmonize biosafety frameworks at the regional and subregional levels;

11. Invites Parties and other Governments, in collaboration with relevant organizations, to adopt, as appropriate, the following measures in order to strengthen human resources for the effective implementation of the Protocol:

(a) Encourage the development of training of trainers' programmes in technical aspects of biosafety in collaboration with relevant partners, including regional centres of excellence and national training institutions;

(b) Develop core local expertise in biosafety through long-term formal training and/or attachment of personnel to specialized institutions or centres of excellence, located in the country or abroad;

(c) Utilize opportunities offered by capacity-building activities for biotechnology to the extent that they are relevant for biosafety;

(d) Promote and facilitate direct bilateral exchanges of technical experts between countries in order to build capacities in biosafety and encourage bilateral or regional cooperation;

12. Urges Parties, other Governments and relevant organizations to include in the design of their biosafety capacity-building initiatives a requirement to provide to the Biosafety Clearing-House information regarding the activities, outcomes, best practices and lessons learned from those initiatives in order to facilitate the broader sharing of such information;

13. Requests the Executive Secretary to prepare, on the basis of the submissions referred to in paragraph 6 above, a synthesis report for consideration by the meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Protocol that will undertake the comprehensive review of the Action Plan;

Coordination Mechanism

Welcoming the report of the second coordination meeting for Governments and organizations implementing or funding biosafety capacity-building activities, which was held in Tromsø, Norway, from 18 to 20 January 2006 (UNEP/CBD/COP-MOP/3/INF/5);

Expressing its appreciation to the Government of Norway for sponsoring and hosting the second coordination meeting referred to above;

Emphasizing the need for promoting synergies and partnerships between different capacity-building initiatives in order foster increased efficiency in the use of available resources,

14. Reiterates its call made in decision BS-I/5, paragraph 23, to all Parties and other Governments to establish national coordination mechanisms for biosafety capacity-building;

15. Invites developed country Parties, other Governments and relevant organizations to provide additional financial and other resources to enable developing country Parties, in particular the least developed and small island developing States among them, as well as Parties with economies in transition, to participate in the global Coordination Mechanism;

16. Invites also developed country Parties, other Governments and relevant organizations to assist developing country Parties, in particular the least developed and small island developing States among them, as well as Parties with economies in transition to build their capacity to establish and implement biosafety coordination mechanisms at the national and regional levels;

17. Urges Parties, other Governments and relevant organizations to regularly update, as appropriate, information on their capacity-building submitted to the Biosafety Clearing-House and to improve the level of detail and quality of the information;

18. Invites Parties, other Governments and relevant organizations to document and publicize, including through the Biosafety Clearing-House, experiences, best practices and lessons learned in coordination and collaboration;

19. Invites Parties, other Governments, relevant organizations and regional bodies, including the regional economic commissions of the United Nations, to organize, as appropriate, regional and subregional coordination meetings on capacity-building for biosafety;

20. Encourages Parties, other Governments and relevant organizations offering to host coordination meetings to invite participants from both recipient countries and donor Governments and organizations in order facilitate effective dialogue on the capacity-building efforts.

Annex

UPDATED ACTION PLAN FOR BUILDING CAPACITIES FOR THE EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE BIOSAFETY PROTOCOL

1. Objective of the Action Plan

1. The objective of this Action Plan is to facilitate and support the development and strengthening of capacities for the ratification and effective implementation of the Cartagena Pro tocol on Biosafety at the national, sub regional, regional and global levels in a timely manner. In this regard, the provision of financial, technical and technological support to developing countries, in particular the least developed and small island developing States among them, as well as countries with economies in transition, including countries amongst these that are centres of origin and centres of genetic diversity, is essential.

2. To achieve the above objective, this action plan aims to provide a general strategic framework to guide and facilitate the identification of co untry needs, priorities, actions and mechanisms of implementation and funding of capacity-building efforts at the national, regional and international levels .

2. Guiding principles and approaches

3. In light of the operational experience and lessons learned from relevant processes, capacity-building initiatives undertaken in support of this Action Plan should, as appropriate:

(a) Be country-driven, i.e. responsive to the needs and priorities identified by the recipient countries themselves, taking into account the dynamic nature of some capacity-building needs;

(b) Ensure national ownership and leadership, including the setting of the agenda and the design, implementation and coordination of the initiatives;

(c) Ensure systematic and timely participation of all relevant stakeholders in the formulation planning and implementation of capacity-building initiatives;.

(d) Recognizing that capacity-building is a dynamic, progressive and long-term process, apply an adaptive and learning-by-doing approach;

(e) Maximize synergy and complementarity among all capacity-building initiatives relevant to biosafety;

(f) Apply a results-oriented approach, focusing on achieving specific capacity-building outcomes;

(g) Promote policy dialogue with donors and organizations providing biosafety capacity--building assistance and encourage the participation of civil society and the private sector in such dialogue;

(h) Apply a holistic approach, integrating biosafety activities with relevant sectoral and national policies, strategies and programmes;

(i) Encourage the development and implementation of nationally-designed and resourced activities that address the specific needs and priorities of each country;

(j) Promote high level political will and commitment to the implementation of the Protocol.

3. Key elements requiring concrete action

4. The following key elements are meant to be considered in a flexible manner, taking into account the different situations, capabilities and stages of development in each country.

(a) Institutional capacity-building:

(i) Legislative and regulatory framework;

(ii) Administrative framework;

(iii) Technical, scientific and telecommunications infrastructures;

(iv) Funding and resource management;

(v) Mechanisms for follow-up, monitoring and assessment;

(b) Human-resources development and training;

(c) Risk assessment and other scientific and technical expertise;

(d) Risk management;

(e) Awareness, participation and education at all levels, including for decision makers, stakeholders and the general public;

(f) Information exchange and data management, including full participation in the Biosafety Clearing-House;

(g) Scientific, technical and institutional collaboration at sub regional, regional and international levels;

(h) Technology transfer;

(i) Identification of living modified organisms, including their detection;

(j) Socio-economic considerations;

(k) Implementation of the documentation requirements under Article 18.2 of the Protocol;

(l) Handling of confidential information;

(m) Measures to address unintentional and/or illegal transboundary movements of living modified organisms;

(n) Scientific biosafety research relating to living modified organisms;

(o) The taking into account risks to human health.

4. Processes/steps

5. The following processes/steps should be undertaken within appropriate timeframes:

(a) Identification of existing capacities and assessment of capacity-building needs;

(b) Prioritization of the key elements by each country and the sequencing of actions, including development of timelines, for building capacities in biosafety;

(c) Mobilization of existing capacities and ensuring their effective utilization;

(d) Identification of the coverage and gaps in capacity-building initiatives and resources that could support the ratification and implementation of the Protocol, from the following:

1. Global Environment Facility (GEF);
2. Multilateral agencies;
3. Other international sources;
4. Bilateral sources;
5. Other stakeholders;
6. National sources;

(e) Enhancement of the effectiveness and adequacy of financial resources to be provided by multilateral and bilateral donors and other donors to developing countries, in particular the least developed and small island developing States among them, as well as countries with economies in transition taking, including countries amongst these that are centres of origin and centres of genetic diversity;

(f) Enhancement of synergies and coordination of capacity-building initiatives at different levels;

(g) Development of indicators for evaluating capacity-building measures at different levels;

(h) Identification and maximization of opportunities for partnerships and collaborative initiatives in order to leverage resources and achieve greater impact.

5. Implementation

6. The activities hereun der are indicative tasks to be undertaken at different levels to implement the associated elements and processes identified above. The sequence in which they are listed does not establish any order of priority:

5.1 National level

(a) Assessment of the effectiveness and adequacy of existing capacity;

(b) Assessment of the short-term and long-term requirements for internal and external funding;

(c) Development of a national biosafety capacity-building strategy and action plan, prioritizing the capacity-building needs and defining specific objectives, outputs, targets and timelines;

(d) Integration of biosafety into broader national development strategies and plans, including country Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs), country assistance strategies and/or other similar instruments;

(e) Development and implementation of national biosafety frameworks;

(f) Development and/or strengthening of institutional, administrative, financial and technical capacities, including the designation of national focal points and competent national authorities;

(g) Development of a mechanism for handling requests or notifications, including risk assessment and decision-making, as well as public information and participation;

(h) Establishment of a mechanism for monitoring and compliance;

(i) Establishment of a mechanism to inform all stakeholders;

(j) Establishment of a system to facilitate appropriate participation of all relevant stakeholders;

(k) Establishment and/or strengthening of a national coordination mechanism in order to promote synchronized and synergistic implementation of capacity-building activities and the harmonized use of donor assistance at the country level.

5.2 Subregional and regional levels

(a) Assessment of national, bilateral and multilateral funding;

e. Establishment of regional websites and databases;

f. Establishment of mechanisms for regional and sub regional coordination and harmonization of biosafety frameworks, where appropriate;

g. Promotion of regional and subre gional collaborative arrangements;

h. Establishment of regional and subregional advisory mechanisms;

i. Establishment and/or strengthening of regional and subregional centres of excellence and training.

5.3 International level

(a) Ensuring the effective functioning of the Biosafety Clearing-House;

j. Enhancing the effectiveness, adequacy and coordination of financial resources provided by multilateral and bilateral donors and other donors to developing countries, in particular the least developed and small island developing States among them and countries with economies in transition, including countries amongst these that are centres of origin and centres of genetic diversity;

k. Development and effective use of the roster of experts;

l. Enhancing synergies and coordination among capacity-building initiatives;

m. Strengthening South-South cooperation;.

n. Development/updating of international guidance by relevant international organizations, including the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), IUCN and others;

o. Regular review and provision of further guidance by the Conference of the Parties to the Convention serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Protocol.

6. Monitoring and coordination

7. Because of the multitude of different actors undertaking different capacity- building initiatives, mutual information, coordination and regular monitoring will be promoted in order to avoid duplications and to identify gaps. This exercise will lead to a focus of capacity- building on biosafety, ratification, and implementation of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety. The Secretariat and the Biosafety Clearing-House will be actively involved in the process.

8. The Secretariat will prepare, on the basis of submissions by Governments, a report on the steps taken by countries, multilateral/bilateral and other international actors towards the implementation of the Action Plan. The report will be submitted to the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Protocol so that it identifies whether the actions listed under section 5 above have been carried out successfully and effectively.

7. Review of the Action Plan

9. A review of the Action Plan will be undertaken every five years by the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Protocol, based on an independent evaluation of the effectiveness and outcomes of capacity-building initiatives implemented in support of the Action Plan.