Monitoring and reporting
The Intergovernmental Committee for the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety
1. Recognizes the need for clear and simple reporting requirements that:
(a) Consider technical, technological and financial capacity limitations in developing countries, in particular the least developed and small island developing States among them, and countries with economies in transition, as well as countries that are centres of origin and centres of genetic diversity;
(b) Avoid duplication of other requirements pursuant to the Convention;
(c) Support statistical analysis and compilation;
(d) Encourage Parties to provide detailed information at national as well as at regional levels, where such information can be useful to other Parties;
2. Supports the general format contained in the annex to the note by the Executive Secretary on monitoring and reporting (UNEP/CBD/ICCP/2/4), and invites Governments to provide written comments on the draft format to the Executive Secretary before 15 January 2002, with a view to further developing the format;
3. Recommends that the first meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Protocol establish guidelines for the reports under Article 33 that:
(a) Request Parties to make use of the agreed format;
(b) Recommend that Parties prepare their reports through a consultative process involving all relevant stakeholders, as appropriate;
(c) Request Parties to submit their reports:
(i) On a general frequency of every four years, but in the initial four-year period to submit an interim report two years after the entry into force of the Protocol;
(ii) Twelve months prior to the meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Protocol that will consider the report;
(iii) In an official language of the United Nations;
(iv) In both hard copy and electronic format;
4. Recommends that the intervals and formats of the reports should be kept under review, building on the experience of Parties in preparing their reports.
