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Fourth National Report on the Implementation of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (NR4)
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BCH-NR4-TT-266780-1   |   PDF   |   Print   |  
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last updated: 29 Feb 2024
General Information

CHM-NFP-TT-241097-11 National Focal Points Ms. Farah Aligour
To view the current National Focal Point information, click here.

None
EN

01 Jan 2016
01 Mar 2024
Party to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety
Yes
EN
Article 2 – General provisions
Article 2 requires each Party to take the necessary and appropriate legal, administrative and other measures to implement its obligations under the Protocol
Only draft measures exist
EN
  • Other laws, regulations or guidelines that indirectly apply to biosafety
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
A national biosafety policy has been approved April 2014 and subsequently revised in 2016. The GEF/ UNEP project for implementing National Biosafety frameworks in the Caribbean Sub Region was concluded in 2019. The UWI was the executing Agency for the project. At the Close of the Project a strategic outlook for biosafety in the CARICOM region was developed threat provided a way forward to take up the recommendations from the project terminal evaluation. The strategic outlook was finalized at a regional meeting of Biosafety focal points that was held in Trinidad and Tobago in January 2020 at which the consensus was that a successor project will be advanced under the new GEF 8 Replenishment. Through this project, a BCH website was developed for Trinidad and Tobago.
EN
Article 5 - Pharmaceuticals
No
EN
Article 6 – Transit and Contained use
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
Articles 7 to 10 – Advance Informed Agreement (AIA) and intentional introduction of LMOs into the environment
Yes, to some extent
EN
The National Environmental Policy of Trinidad and Tobago provides in section 3.2 that GMOs shall not be imported or acquired, marketed or released into the environment without authorization from the relevant government authority. The Plant Protection Act 2001, section 4A(j) prohibits the importation of a particular species of organism or of a bio technically developed variant of such organism capable of having a deleterious effect on a plant or plant product
EN
Not applicable (Party currently not exporting LMOs)
EN
No
EN
No
EN
Article 11 – Procedure for living modified organisms intended for direct use as food or feed, or for processing (LMOs-FFP)
No
EN
No
EN
None
EN
No
EN
None
EN
Article 12 – Review of decision
No
EN
No
EN
Article 13 – Simplified procedure
No
EN
No
EN
Article 14 – Bilateral, regional and multilateral agreements and arrangements
None
EN
Articles 15 & 16 – Risk Assessment and Risk Management
No
EN
Yes, to some extent
EN
As part of the GEF/ UNEP project for implementing National Biosafety frameworks in the Caribbean Sub Region person were trained on the use of polymerase chain reaction technologies
EN
None
EN
None
EN
None
EN
No
EN
Yes
EN
Training in the entire process of risk analysis.
EN
Yes
EN
Yes
EN
Yes
EN
Yes
EN
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
Yes
EN
CAHFSA -Caribbean Agricultural Health and Food Safety Agency under CARICOM is moving in the direction of establishing a regional risk assessment committee and considering the expansion of an adopted CARICOM guideline for pest risk analysis to include the assessment of LMOs as plant pest. There is a possibility of using the guidance risk analysis framework for GMOs prepared under the GEF project to prepare a risk assessment model for biosafety.
EN
Article 17 – Unintentional transboundary movements2 and emergency measures
2 In accordance with the operational definition adopted in decision CP-VIII/16, “‘Unintentional transboundary movement’ is a transboundary movement of a living modified organism that has inadvertently crossed the national borders of a Party where the living modified organism was released, and the requirements of Article 17 of the Protocol apply to such transboundary movements only if the living modified organism involved is likely to have significant adverse effects on the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity, taking also into account risks to human health, in the affected or potentially affected States.”
Yes, to some extent
EN
A BCH focal point has been appointed and a BCH website for Trinidad and Tobago exists.
EN
None
EN
No
EN
None
EN
Article 18 – Handling, transport, packaging and identification
No
EN
No
EN
Yes
EN
As part of other documentation (not specific for LMOs)
EN
No
EN
Yes, to some extent
EN
It is required under the Plant Protection Act 13 of 1975 ammended 2001, prohibit the importation of a particular species of organism or of a bio technically developed variant of such organism capable of having a deleterious effect on a plant or a plant product. Importers are required to provide country information including if the commodity is a product of modern biotechnology.
EN
No
EN
Yes
EN
None
EN
No
EN
1 to 9
EN
No
EN
Yes
EN
None
EN
Article 19 – Competent National Authorities and National Focal Points
Not applicable (only one competent national authority was designated)
EN
No
EN
No
EN
Article 20 – Information Sharing and the Biosafety Clearing-House (BCH)
Information not available
EN
Information not available
EN
Information not available
EN
Information available and in the BCH
EN
Information not available
EN
Information not available
EN
Information not available
EN
Information not available
EN
Information not available
EN
Information not available
EN
Information not available
EN
Information not available
EN
Information not available
EN
Information not available
EN
Information not available
EN
Information not available
EN
Information not available
EN
No
EN
No
EN
Not applicable (no decisions were taken)
EN
No
EN
1 to 4
EN
None
EN
Article 21 – Confidential information
Yes, to some extent
EN
Guidelines for such an activity appear in the National Biosafety Policy and the document Implementing National Biosafety Frameworks in the Caribbean Sub-Region
EN
No
EN
Article 22 – Capacity-building
No
EN
Yes
EN
  • Regional channels
No
EN
Yes
EN
Trinidad and Tobago has expressed interest in the successor initiative to the Global Environment Facility-funded UNEP Regional Project For Implementing National Biosafety Frameworks In The Caribbean Sub-Region.
EN
Average
EN
Yes
EN
  • Institutional capacity and human resources
  • Public awareness, participation and education in biosafety
  • Information exchange and data management including participation in the Biosafety Clearing-House
  • Scientific, technical and institutional collaboration at subregional, regional and international levels
  • Technology transfer
  • Identification of LMOs, including their detection
No
EN
Yes
EN
  • Institutional capacity and human resources
  • Integration of biosafety in cross-sectoral and sectoral legislation, policies and institutions (mainstreaming biosafety)
  • Risk assessment and other scientific and technical expertise
  • Risk management
  • Public awareness, participation and education in biosafety
  • Information exchange and data management including participation in the Biosafety Clearing-House
  • Scientific, technical and institutional collaboration at subregional, regional and international levels
  • Technology transfer
  • Sampling, detection and identification of LMOs
  • Socio-economic considerations
  • Implementation of the documentation requirements for handling, transport, packaging and identification
  • Handling of confidential information
  • Measures to address unintentional and/or illegal transboundary movements of LMOs
  • Scientific biosafety research relating to LMOs
  • Taking into account risks to human health
  • Liability and redress
No
EN
No
EN
Article 23 – Public awareness and participation
Yes, to some extent
EN
This is addressed to some extent in the National Policy
EN
No
EN
Yes, to some extent
EN
Information regarding LMOs when provided through the BCH can be made available on the official website of the Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries
EN
No
EN
No
EN
Yes
EN
None
EN
1 to 4
EN
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
Not applicable (no decisions were taken)
EN
No
EN
Trinidad and Tobago has access to a Biosafety graduate programme through the regional University, The University of the West Indies
EN
Article 24 – Non-Parties
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
Article 25 – Illegal transboundary movements3
3In accordance with the operational definition adopted in decision CP VIII/16, “‘Illegal transboundary movement’ is a transboundary movement of living modified organisms carried out in contravention of the domestic measures to implement the Protocol that have been adopted by the Party concerned”.
Yes, to some extent
EN
Guidelines for such an activity appear in the National Biosafety Policy and the document Implementing National Biosafety Frameworks in the Caribbean Sub-Region.
EN
None
EN
Article 26 – Socio-economic considerations
No
EN
Not applicable (no decisions were taken)
EN
None
EN
No
EN
Article 28 – Financial Mechanism and Resources
Nothing
EN
Article 33 – Monitoring and reporting
Article 33 requires Parties to monitor the implementation of its obligations under the Cartagena Protocol and to report to the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Cartagena Protocol on measures taken to implement the Protocol
No
EN
Nagoya-Kuala Lumpur Supplementary Protocol on Liability and Redress
Parties to the Cartagena Protocol that are not yet Party to the Supplementary Protocol are also invited to respond to the questions below
No
EN
No
EN
No measures have yet been taken
EN
No instruments are in place
EN
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
No
EN
Other information
Comments on reporting format