Within the reporting period, the following regulatory framework have been put in place:<br />- Decree N°2012/431 of 1st of October 2012 organising the Ministry of Environment, Protection of Nature and Sustainable Development,<br />- Order N° 039/CAB/PM of 30th of January 2012 carrying the creation, organisaiton and functioning of the National Biosafety Committee,<br />- Decision N° 00334/D/MINEPDED/CAB of 9th of September 2014 constituting the National Biosafety Committee.<br />- An interinstitutional and trans-sectoral coordination mechanism is under piloting within the Cameroon Biosecurity Project especially with respect to the functioning of its Project Advisory Committee.<br />- Setting up of mixed control posts in charge of surveillance at entry points.

LMOs which are pharmaceuticals are regulated within articles 2(3) and 49 to 53 of the Law N° 2003/006 of the 21st of&nbsp; April 2003 to lay down safety regulations governing modern biotechnology in Cameroon and also within articles 26 - 35 of the Decree N° 2007/0737/PM of the 31st of May 2007 on the application of the Law.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; <br />The Law of 2003 as well as the Decree of 2007 are available on the BCH. <br />However, the Order N° 039/CAB/PM of 30th of January 2012 carrying the creation, organisaiton and functioning of the National Biosafety Committee and the Decision N° 00334/D/MINEPDED/CAB of 9th of September 2014 constituting the National Biosafety Committee are not yet available on the BCH

The Law N° 2003/006 of the 21st of&nbsp; April 2003 to lay down safety regulations governing modern biotechnology in Cameroon and the Decree N° 2007/0737/PM of the 31st of May 2007 on the application of the Law are available on the BCH.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; <br />However, the Order N° 039/CAB/PM of 30th of January 2012 carrying the creation, organisaiton and functioning of the National Biosafety Committee and the Decision N° 00334/D/MINEPDED/CAB of 9th of September 2014 constituting the National Biosafety Committee are not yet available on the BCH

Decisions for the delivery of an AIA are taken by the National Competent Authority upon consultation with the National Biosafety Committee. <br />Within the reporting period, a total of six decisions for experimentation have been taken&nbsp; comprised of two (02) AIA authorizations and four (04) import authorizations. The two AIA decisions taken include:<br />-&nbsp; AIA No. 00794/AP/MINEPDED/SG/DSCPR/SDCPB of 31st of May 2012 delivered by the Competent National Authority for the importation of Genetically Modified Cotton for confined field trials.<br />- AIA No. 00988/L/MINEPDED/SG/DAG of 6th of July 2015 was delivered by the Competent National Authority for the importation of GM cotton for open field trials.<br />So far, all AIA decisions taken have been forwarded to the notifier but not to the BCH. <br />The first AIA decision for the importation of GM cotton for confined field trials went beyond the ninety days timeline due to reasons beyond the control the Competent National Authority. However, with the creation of the National Biosafety Committee, the second AIA decision for the importation of GM cotton for open field trials respected the ninety days timeline.

Capacity building activities have been envisaged within the training and capacity building component of the Cameroon Biosecurity Project. <br />A training of trainers in biological invasions was carried out in May 2012 followed by a national training in November 2014. Several other trainings including trainings on detection, diagnosis, monitoring and quantification of biological invaders are envisaged within the Project.

With respect to the GM cotton trials, a total of two reviews of request for reconsideration of the decisions taken have been made and changed. <br />The first review and change of decision was done during concertations for the delivery of the AIA for confined field trials.<br />The second review and change of decision was made during the concertations for the delivery of an AIA for open field trials.

So far, Cameroon has not received any request requiring the application of the simplified procedures.

There is a legal framework for evaluation of risks within the Law N° 2003/006 of the 21st&nbsp; of&nbsp; April 2003 to lay down safety regulations governing modern biotechnology in Cameroon, the Decree N° 2007/0737/PM of the 31st&nbsp; of May 2007 on the application of the Law and the activities of the National Biosafety Committee and the ongoing Cameroon Biosecurity Project.<br />There is a training on risk analysis envisaged within the Cameroon Biosecurity Project. The training of trainers manuals within the project&nbsp; produced will be further used for national trainings. <br />So far the manual on RA from the SCBD has not been used for national trainings. This manual was developed after the 2004 RA &amp; RM manual for Cameroon which is up for review during the Cameroon Biosecurity Project. The review will definitely be derived from the manual on RA developed by the SCBD.<br />With respect to the country's capacity to detect, identify, monitor or assess LMOs, the following laboratories are currently recognised; the Biotechnology Centre of the University of Yaoundé I, the Biotechnology Unit of the University of Buea, the JB Johnson Biotechnology Lab IRAD-EKONA, the Biotechnology Laboratory of CARBAP in NJOMBE, the National Veterinary Laboratory (LANAVET), the laboratory of Centre Pasteur in Yaoundé and CREMER/IMPM. Eventhough these facilities exist, there is need for increased capacity building which will be undertaken under the Cameroon Biosecurity Project and beyond.<br />Trainings on risk assessment and risk management are carried out in the Biotechnology centre of the University of Yaoundé I and the Biotechnology Unit of the University of Buea. The trainings on risk assessment, risk management/ control and monitoring&nbsp; carried out within the University have been limited to components within Degree and Master's programmes in Biotechnology and Biochemistry. Furthermore, training workshops on risk assessment and risk management are envisaged within the Cameroon Biosecurity Project.<br />The participation of experts from Burkina Faso in meetings related to the GM cotton trials by SODECOTON/ BAYER, the participation of NESTLE, BAYER, SODECOTON in the forum for GMOs that took place from the 8th to the 10th of September 2015 reflect Cooperation between Cameroon and other parties on LMO intellectual property issues. For the ongoing field trials on GM cotton, risk assessments have been carried out. <br /> The framework for monitoring the effects of LMOs has been developed under the Cameroon Biosecurity Project with the production of a contingency plan and emergency response mechanism. However, this is yet to be applied.

During the reporting period, there is an article published online under the Food and Nutrition Sciences website (Vol.5 No.10(2014), Article ID:45604,7 pages DOI:10.4236/fns.2014.510102) by Djoulde D. R and Sobda Gone titled "Evidence of the Presence of Genetically Modified Foods in the Sudano-Sahelian Zones of Cameroon". This article claims that there is an illegal and perhaps an unintentional transboundary movement of five (05) GMOs in the Northern Regions of Cameroon. <br />A Masters' Degree Thesis in Biochemistry by Ghepdeu Gisele in 2009 titled "Detection of Foreign Genes in Food Products in Cameroon: Case of Cereals and Cereal-based Products" also indicates that GMOs can be found in the commercial sector in Cameroon.

The handling, transport, packaging and identification of LMOs are regulated by article 28 of the Law N° 2003/006 of the 21st&nbsp; of&nbsp; April 2003 to lay down safety regulations governing modern biotechnology in Cameroon and articles 36-40, 49 - 55 of the&nbsp; Decree N° 2007/0737/PM of the 31st of May 2007 on the application of the Law. <br />So far within the Cameroon Biosecurity Project,&nbsp; some customs officers and laboratory personnel have been trained on Biological invasion in 2012 and 2014. More of such trainings are envisaged within the project. <br />Presently in Cameroon, the Biotechnology Centre of the University of Yaoundé I and the Biotechnology Unit of the University of Buea have been accredited by the Competent National Authority but not certified by an International Body. <br />The capacities of the Biotechnology Centre of the University of Yaounde I and the Biotechnology Unit of the University of Buea had been reinforced within the National Biosafety Framework project and maybe further reinforced within the ongoing Cameroon Biosecurity Project.

The Competent National Authority takes decisions on Biosafety issues upon consultation with the National Biosafety Committee. The National Biosafety Committee is charged with the responsibility of examining requests involving LMOs. In Cameroon, there exist only one Competent National Authority.

The Law N° 2003/006 of the 21st&nbsp; of&nbsp; April 2003 to lay down safety regulations governing modern biotechnology in Cameroon and the Decree N° 2007/0737/PM of the 31st&nbsp; of May 2007 on the application of the Law make provisions for the exchange of information via the BCH. The national portal of the BCH exist and is hosted within the Competent National Authority. However, the National BCH is not fully functional and information available requires updating. So far, the Law N° 2003/006 of the 21st&nbsp; of&nbsp; April 2003 to lay down safety regulations governing modern biotechnology in Cameroon and the Decree N° 2007/0737/PM of the 31st&nbsp; of May 2007 on the application of the Law can be accessed from the national BCH as well as the central portal of the BCH. <br />A major issue is the unavailability of information on the ongoing GM cotton trials as well as the activities of the Cameroon Biosecurity Project on the national BCH. <br />Within the reporting period, a great number of national, regional and international events on Biosafety issues have been organised such as, workshops and trainings within the Cameroon Biosecurity Project, the National Biosafety Project Coordinators Regional Meetings, the National Forum on the utilisation of GMOs, the Biotechnology Policy Framework Forum, etc.&nbsp; <br />However, the information generated from the above events is not widely available and can not be accessed via the national BCH portal. The reports from these events have been published under various national websites.

Within the reporting period, some capacity building activities have been carried out with respect to the Cameroon Biosecurity Project, the ongoing GM cotton intentional introduction for contained and open field trials as well as public awareness and communication activities during the National Forum on the utilisation of GMOs and the Forum on the Biotechnology Policy Framework.<br />Most of these capacity building activities have benefitted from external support via bilateral and multilateral channels. <br />The procedure for obtaining GEF funding for new projects can be qualified as average due to the fact that the project development cycle is rigorous and long from project identification to project approval. However, once a project has been approved, the procedure for accessing GEF funds becomes easier. Cameroon has benefitted from GEF financial support in the development of its National Biosafety Framework and the ongoing Cameroon Biosecurity Project. <br />With respect to Government co-funding mechanism, the commitment is firm but the procedure for accessing the funds however remains very difficult.<br />Within the Cameroon Biosecurity Project, a needs assessment for capacity building of the biotechnology centres is envisaged.<br />So far, Cameroon has three (03) national experts enrolled on the list of biosafety experts in the BCH central portal. However the coordinates of these national biosafety experts are not found on the country profile of the BCH central portal.

Within the information and awareness raising component of the Cameroon Biosecurity Project jointly managed by the Ministry of Scientific Research and Innovation and the Ministry of Environment, Protection of Nature and Sustainable Development, several outreach materials such as posters, flyers, notebooks and folders have been developed and disseminated. Further more, outreach activities such as press interviews, radio and television interviews have been carried out within the same component. These activities activities will be intensified with the putting in place of the communications and awareness raising strategy.

Public participation on biosafety issues have been promoted via the organisation of forums as follows; in 2004 - the organisation of the forum in Limbe and the National Forum by the Cameroon Academy of Sciences&nbsp; sponsored by MINEP (Ministy of Environment and Protection of Nature) /MINRESI, in 2010- the forum on GM cotton jointly sponsored by SODECOTON/BAYER, in 2014- the forum on the Biotechnology Policy Framework requested by the Ministry of Scientific Research and Innovation (MINRESI) sponsored by US National Academy&nbsp; of Sciences and in 2015- the national forum on the utilisation of GMOs organised by the Ministry of Mines, Industries and Technological Development (MINMIDT). <br />There are educational materials for training on Biosafety in the form of lecture notes provided within the Master's Programme in Biotechnology, Biochemistry and the Molecular Diagnostics Course offered by the Universities of Yaoundé I and Buea. However, these educational materials are not available online.<br />With regards to the ongoing intentional introduction of GM cotton in the Northern Regions of Cameroon, public participation has been taken into consideration and implemented at least once per year for the 3 experimentation sites for the 3 years of confined field trials and the first year of the open field trials 2015.The decisions taken with respect to the intentional introduction of GM cotton has been made known to the public and authorities of the Northern regions.

Articles 60 - 64 of the Law N° 2003/006 of the 21st&nbsp; of&nbsp; April 2003 to lay down safety regulations governing modern biotechnology in Cameroon regulate the illegal transboundary movements of LMOs. <br />However, there is an article published online under the Food and Nutrition Sciences website (Vol.5 No.10(2014), Article ID:45604,7 pages DOI:10.4236/fns.2014.510102) by Djoulde D. R and Sobda Gone titled "Evidence of the Presence of Genetically Modified Foods in the Sudano-Sahelian Zones of Cameroon". This article claims that there is an illegal transboundary movements of 5 GMOs in the Northern Regions of Cameroon.<br />Furthermore, a Master's Degree Thesis in Biochemistry by Ghepdeu Gisele in 2009 titled "Detection of Foreign Genes in Food Products in Cameroon: Case of Cereals and Cereal-based Products" also indicates that GMOs can be found in the commercial sector in Cameroon.

Socio-economic considerations are regulated by articles 32 and 33 of the Law N° 2003/006 of the 21st&nbsp; of&nbsp; April 2003 to lay down safety regulations governing modern biotechnology in Cameroon. These considerations have been taken into account during decision making relating to the ongoing field trials on GM cotton.

The socio-economic, biological and environmental impacts of LMOs and Invasive Alien Species have been quantified under the Cameroon Biosecurity Project.

Cameroon has not yet signed the Nagoya-Kuala Lumpur Supplementary Protocol on Liability and Redress. However the process has been initiated.<br />Cameroon has been represented in capacity building workshops in Addis-Ababa and Riga on the supplementary Protocol.<br />Response to damages on biodiversity resulting from LMOs is regulated by Article 10 of the 2003 Law on Modern Biotechnology.<br />In 2013, a concertation was organised in the Ministry of External Relations with respect to the signature of the Supplementary Protocol by Cameroon. The final decision is awaited.

There are ongoing biosafety activities in Cameroon. However, the effective implementation of the Protocol is hampered by some challenges such as; the lack of a sustainable funding mechanism for biosafety activities in Cameroon, poor internet services, the absence of timely uploaded information relating to biosafety activities on the national BCH portal. <br />The establishment of a Biosecurity Structure (Agency, Institute etc.) as a Biosecurity project outcome will be very beneficial for Cameroon.

There have been improvements on the format of the report eversince the second national biosafety report. <br />However, a major challenge encountered in filling the third national biosafety report involves the case of question 22 where two boxes had to be checked particularly when there were no changes since the previous report and the same response had to be applied.