BS-V/6

Fifth meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (BS COP MOP 5)

`BS-V/6.`Cooperation with other organizations, conventions and initiatives

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

Welcoming the information provided by the Executive Secretary on activities taken to improve cooperation with other organizations, conventions and initiatives ( UNEP/CBD/BS/COP-MOP/5/6),

Welcoming also the cooperation by the Executive Secretary with the Green Customs Initiative, the World Trade Organization, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the International Plant Protection Convention and the Aarhus Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-Making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters among others,

Underlining that effective implementation of the Protocol, including in the area of public awareness and participation, can be fostered through greater cooperation and coordination among relevant organizations, multilateral agreements and initiatives,

Recognizing the importance of coherence among relevant instruments within the larger context of international environmental governance and in relation, in particular, to the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety,

1.Commends the Executive Secretary on his sustained efforts to strengthen cooperation with other organizations, in particular with the World Trade Organization, and requests the Executive Secretary to further intensify efforts to gain observer status in the World Trade Organization committees on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures and Technical Barriers to Trade;

2.Requests the Executive Secretary, subject to the availability of funds, to:

(a)Pursue memoranda of understanding with the International Organization for Standardization and the International Seed Testing Association to further cooperation with these organizations in the context of Article 18;

(b) Continue participating in the relevant meetings of the international standard-setting organizations referred to in decision BS-II/6;

(c)Cooperate with other organizations, conventions and initiatives that are developing work on information-sharing mechanisms with the aim of: (i) identifying possible linkages; and (ii) avoiding, as appropriate, the development of incompatible or duplicate data-sets and guaranteeing the reliability of the information provided;

(d) Maintain cooperation with organizations involved in packaging and transport rules and standards.

COP-MOP Decisions

BS-V/6.Cooperation with other organizations, conventions and initiatives

`BS-V/6.`Cooperation with other organizations, conventions and initiatives