Announcements
In its decision
BS-VIII/12, the COP-MOP acknowledged the work of the Ad Hoc Technical Expert Group on Risk Assessment and Risk Management, having completed its mandate, as well as the Online Forum on Risk Assessment and Risk Management and took note of the voluntary
Guidance on Risk Assessment of Living Modified Organisms as the outcome of the Ad Hoc Technical Expert Group with input from the Online Forum.
In the same decision, the COP-MOP also invited interested Parties, other Governments and relevant organizations to take the Guidance into account as a voluntary tool to assist in conducting risk assessment in accordance with the Cartagena Protocol while acknowledging that other guidance documents and national approaches can also assist in conducting risk assessment in accordance with the Protocol.
Furthermore, the COP-MOP invited Parties to submit to the Executive Secretary:
- information on their needs and priorities for further guidance on specific topics of risk assessment of living modified organisms;
- proposals on criteria, including the technical justification, that may facilitate the selection of topics for the development of further guidance; and,
- views on perceived gaps in existing guidance materials.
and decided to extend the Online Forum on Risk Assessment and Risk Management to exchange experiences on risk assessment, provide information and views on, and perceived gaps in existing guidance materials, and proposals to address any gaps identified.
Moreover, the COP-mop requested the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice to review the information provided and to recommend a way forward to address the needs, priorities and gaps identified by Parties for consideration by the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Cartagena Protocol at its ninth meeting, including the possible establishment of a new ad hoc technical expert group, with the understanding that new guidance proposals should only be presented upon approval by the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Cartagena Protocol.
In light of these requests, a
tentative calendar of activities outlining a way forward for the implementation of the elements of the COP-MOP decision will be available in due course.
