Agenda 21
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Chapter 16. Environmentally Sound Management of Biotechnology
Introduction
16.1. Biotechnology is the integration of the new techniques emerging from modern
biotechnology with the well-established approaches of traditional biotechnology.
Biotechnology, an emerging knowledge-intensive field, is a set of enabling techniques for
bringing about specific man-made changes in deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), or genetic
material, in plants, animals and microbial systems, leading to useful products and
technologies. By itself, biotechnology cannot resolve all the fundamental problems of
environment and development, so expectations need to be tempered by realism. Nevertheless,
it promises to make a significant contribution in enabling the development of, for
example, better health care, enhanced food security through sustainable agricultural
practices, improved supplies of potable water, more efficient industrial development
processes for transforming raw materials, support for sustainable methods of afforestation
and reforestation, and detoxification of hazardous wastes. Biotechnology also offers new
opportunities for global partnerships, especially between the countries rich in biological
resources (which include genetic resources) but lacking the expertise and investments
needed to apply such resources through biotechnology and the countries that have developed
the technological expertise to transform biological resources so that they serve the needs
of sustainable development. 1/ Biotechnology can assist in the conservation of those
resources through, for example, ex situ techniques. The programme areas set out below seek
to foster internationally agreed principles to be applied to ensure the environmentally
sound management of biotechnology, to engender public trust and confidence, to promote the
development of sustainable applications of biotechnology and to establish appropriate
enabling mechanisms, especially within developing countries, through the following
activities:
(a) Increasing the availability of food, feed and renewable raw materials;
(b) Improving human health;
(c) Enhancing protection of the environment;
(d) Enhancing safety and developing international mechanisms for cooperation;
(e) Establishing enabling mechanisms for the development and the environmentally sound
application of biotechnology.
Programme Areas
A. Increasing the availability of food, feed and renewable raw materials
Basis for action
16.2. To meet the growing consumption needs of the global population, the challenge is
not only to increase food supply, but also to improve food distribution significantly
while simultaneously developing more sustainable agricultural systems. Much of this
increased productivity will need to take place in developing countries. It will require
the successful and environmentally safe application of biotechnology in agriculture, in
the environment and in human health care. Most of the investment in modern biotechnology
has been in the industrialized world. Significant new investments and human resource
development will be required in biotechnology, especially in the developing world.
Objectives
16.3. The following objectives are proposed, keeping in mind the need to promote the
use of appropriate safety measures based on programme area D:
(a) To increase to the optimum possible extent the yield of major crops, livestock, and
aquaculture species, by using the combined resources of modern biotechnology and
conventional plant/animal/micro-organism improvement, including the more diverse use of
genetic material resources, both hybrid and original. 2/ Forest product yields should
similarly be increased, to ensure the sustainable use of forests; 3/
(b) To reduce the need for volume increases of food, feed and raw materials by
improving the nutritional value (composition) of the source crops, animals and
micro-organisms, and to reduce post-harvest losses of plant and animal products;
(c) To increase the use of integrated pest, disease and crop management techniques to
eliminate overdependence on agrochemicals, thereby encouraging environmentally sustainable
agricultural practices;
(d) To evaluate the agricultural potential of marginal lands in comparison with other
potential uses and to develop, where appropriate, systems allowing for sustainable
productivity increases;
(e) To expand the applications of biotechnology in forestry, both for increasing yields
and more efficient utilization of forest products and for improving afforestation and
reforestation techniques. Efforts should be concentrated on species and products that are
grown in and are of value particularly for developing countries;
(f) To increase the efficiency of nitrogen fixation and mineral absorption by the
symbiosis of higher plants with micro-organisms;
(g) To improve capabilities in basic and applied sciences and in the management of
complex interdisciplinary research projects.
Activities
(a) Management-related activities
16.4. Governments at the appropriate level, with the assistance of international and
regional organizations and with the support of non-governmental organizations, the private
sector and academic and scientific institutions, should improve both plant and animal
breeding and micro-organisms through the use of traditional and modern biotechnologies, to
enhance sustainable agricultural output to achieve food security, particularly in
developing countries, with due regard to the prior identification of desired
characteristics before modification, taking into account the needs of farmers, the
socio-economic, cultural and environmental impacts of modifications and the need to
promote sustainable social and economic development, paying particular attention to how
the use of biotechnology will impact on the maintenance of environmental integrity.
16.5. More specifically, these entities should:
(a) Improve productivity, nutritional quality and shelf-life of food and animal feed
products, with efforts including work on pre- and post-harvest losses;
(b) Further develop resistance to diseases and pests;
(c) Develop plant cultivars tolerant and/or resistant to stress from factors such as
pests and diseases and from abiotic causes;
(d) Promote the use of underutilized crops of possible future importance for human
nutrition and industrial supply of raw materials;
(e) Increase the efficiency of symbiotic processes that assist sustainable agricultural
production;
(f) Facilitate the conservation and safe exchange of plant, animal and microbial germ
plasm by applying risk assessment and management procedures, including improved diagnostic
techniques for detection of pests and diseases by better methods of rapid propagation;
(g) Develop improved diagnostic techniques and vaccines for the prevention and spread
of diseases and for rapid assessment of toxins or infectious organisms in products for
human use or livestock feed;
(h) Identify more productive strains of fast-growing trees, especially for fuel wood,
and develop rapid propagation methods to aid their wider dissemination and use;
(i) Evaluate the use of various biotechnology techniques to improve the yields of fish,
algal and other aquatic species;
(j) Promote sustainable agricultural output by strengthening and broadening the
capacity and scope of existing research centres to achieve the necessary critical mass
through encouragement and monitoring of research into the development of biological
products and processes of productive and environmental value that are economically and
socially feasible, while taking safety considerations into account;
(k) Promote the integration of appropriate and traditional biotechnologies for the
purposes of cultivating genetically modified plants, rearing healthy animals and
protecting forest genetic resources;
(l) Develop processes to increase the availability of materials derived from
biotechnology for use in food, feed and renewable raw materials production.
(b) Data and information
16.6. The following activities should be undertaken:
(a) Consideration of comparative assessments of the potential of the different
technologies for food production, together with a system for assessing the possible
effects of biotechnologies on international trade in agricultural products;
(b) Examination of the implications of the withdrawal of subsidies and the possible use
of other economic instruments to reflect the environmental costs associated with the
unsustainable use of agrochemicals;
(c) Maintenance and development of data banks of information on environmental and
health impacts of organisms to facilitate risk assessment;
(d) Acceleration of technology acquisition, transfer and adaptation by developing
countries to support national activities that promote food security.
(c) International and regional cooperation and coordination
16.7. Governments at the appropriate level, with the support of relevant international
and regional organizations, should promote the following activities in conformity with
international agreements or arrangements on biological diversity, as appropriate:
(a) Cooperation on issues related to conservation of, access to and exchange of germ
plasm; rights associated with intellectual property and informal innovations, including
farmers' and breeders' rights; access to the benefits of biotechnology; and bio-safety;
(b) Promotion of collaborative research programmes, especially in developing countries,
to support activities outlined in this programme area, with particular reference to
cooperation with local and indigenous people and their communities in the conservation of
biological diversity and sustainable use of biological resources, as well as the fostering
of traditional methods and knowledge of such groups in connection with these activities;
(c) Acceleration of technology acquisition, transfer and adaptation by developing
countries to support national activities that promote food security, through the
development of systems for substantial and sustainable productivity increases that do not
damage or endanger local ecosystems; 4/
(d) Development of appropriate safety procedures based on programme area D, taking
account of ethical considerations.
Means of implementation
(a) Financing and cost evaluation
16.8. The Conference secretariat has estimated the average total annual cost
(1993-2000) of implementing the activities of this programme to be about $5 billion,
including about $50 million from the international community on grant or concessional
terms. These are indicative and order-of-magnitude estimates only and have not been
reviewed by Governments. Actual costs and financial terms, including any that are
non-concessional, will depend upon, inter alia, the specific strategies and programmes
Governments decide upon for implementation.
(b) Scientific and technological means*
(c) Human resource development
16.9. Training of competent professionals in the basic and applied sciences at all
levels (including scientific personnel, technical staff and extension workers) is one of
the most essential components of any programme of this kind. Creating awareness of the
benefits and risks of biotechnology is essential. Given the importance of good management
of research resources for the successful completion of large multidisciplinary projects,
continuing programmes of formal training for scientists should include managerial
training. Training programmes should also be developed, within the context of specific
projects, to meet regional or national needs for comprehensively trained personnel capable
of using advanced technology to reduce the "brain drain" from developing to
developed countries. Emphasis should be given to
* See paras. 16.6 and 16.7.
encouraging collaboration between and training of scientists, extension workers and
users to produce integrated systems. Additionally, special consideration should be given
to the execution of programmes for training and exchange of knowledge on traditional
biotechnologies and for training on safety procedures.
(d) Capacity-building
16.10. Institutional upgrading or other appropriate measures will be needed to build up
technical, managerial, planning and administrative capacities at the national level to
support the activities in this programme area. Such measures should be backed up by
international, scientific, technical and financial assistance adequate to facilitate
technical cooperation and raise the capacities of the developing countries. Programme area
E contains further details.
B. Improving human health
Basis for action
16.11. The improvement of human health is one of the most important objectives of
development. The deterioration of environmental quality, notably air, water and soil
pollution owing to toxic chemicals, hazardous wastes, radiation and other sources, is a
matter of growing concern. This degradation of the environment resulting from inadequate
or inappropriate development has a direct negative effect on human health. Malnutrition,
poverty, poor human settlements, lack of good-quality potable water and inadequate
sanitation facilities add to the problems of communicable and non-communicable diseases.
As a consequence, the health and well-being of people are exposed to increasing pressures.
Objectives
16.12. The main objective of this programme area is to contribute, through the
environmentally sound application of biotechnology to an overall health programme, to: 5/
(a) Reinforce or inaugurate (as a matter of urgency) programmes to help combat major
communicable diseases;
(b) Promote good general health among people of all ages;
(c) Develop and improve programmes to assist in specific treatment of and protection
from major non-communicable diseases;
(d) Develop and strengthen appropriate safety procedures based on programme area D,
taking account of ethical considerations;
(e) Create enhanced capabilities for carrying out basic and applied research and for
managing interdisciplinary research.
Activities
(a) Management-related activities
16.13. Governments at the appropriate level, with the assistance of international and
regional organizations, academic and scientific institutions, and the pharmaceutical
industry, should, taking into account appropriate safety and ethical considerations:
(a) Develop national and international programmes for identifying and targeting those
populations of the world most in need of improvement in general health and protection from
diseases;
(b) Develop criteria for evaluating the effectiveness and the benefits and risks of the
proposed activities;
(c) Establish and enforce screening, systematic sampling and evaluation procedures for
drugs and medical technologies, with a view to barring the use of those that are unsafe
for the purposes of experimentation; ensure that drugs and technologies relating to
reproductive health are safe and effective and take account of ethical considerations;
(d) Improve, systematically sample and evaluate drinking-water quality by introducing
appropriate specific measures, including diagnosis of water-borne pathogens and
pollutants;
(e) Develop and make widely available new and improved vaccines against major
communicable diseases that are efficient and safe and offer protection with a minimum
number of doses, including intensifying efforts directed at the vaccines needed to combat
common diseases of children;
(f) Develop biodegradable delivery systems for vaccines that eliminate the need for
present multiple-dose schedules, facilitate better coverage of the population and reduce
the costs of immunization;
(g) Develop effective biological control agents against disease-transmitting vectors,
such as mosquitoes and resistant variants, taking account of environmental protection
considerations;
(h) Using the tools provided by modern biotechnology, develop, inter alia, improved
diagnostics, new drugs and improved treatments and delivery systems;
(i) Develop the improvement and more effective utilization of medicinal plants and
other related sources;
(j) Develop processes to increase the availability of materials derived from
biotechnology, for use in improving human health.
(b) Data and information
16.14. The following activities should be undertaken:
(a) Research to assess the comparative social, environmental and financial costs and
benefits of different technologies for basic and reproductive health care within a
framework of universal safety and ethical considerations;
(b) Development of public education programmes directed at decision makers and the
general public to encourage awareness and understanding of the relative benefits and risks
of modern biotechnology, according to ethical and cultural considerations.
(c) International and regional cooperation and coordination
16.15. Governments at the appropriate levels, with the support of relevant
international and regional organizations, should:
(a) Develop and strengthen appropriate safety procedures based on programme area D,
taking account of ethical considerations;
(b) Support the development of national programmes, particularly in developing
countries, for improvements in general health, especially protection from major
communicable diseases, common diseases of children and disease-transmitting factors.
Means of implementation
16.16. To achieve the above goals, the activities need to be implemented with urgency
if progress towards the control of major communicable diseases is to be achieved by the
beginning of the next century. The spread of some diseases to all regions of the world
calls for global measures. For more localized diseases, regional or national policies will
be more appropriate. The achievement of goals calls for:
(a) Continuous international commitment;
(b) National priorities with a defined time-frame;
(c) Scientific and financial input at global and national levels. (a) Financing and
cost evaluation
16.17. The Conference secretariat has estimated the average total annual cost
(1993-2000) of implementing the activities of this programme to be about $14 billion,
including about $130 million from the international community on grant or concessional
terms. These are indicative and order-of-magnitude estimates only and have not been
reviewed by Governments. Actual costs and financial terms, including any that are
non-concessional, will depend upon, inter alia, the specific strategies and programmes
Governments decide upon for implementation.
(b) Scientific and technological means
16.18. Well-coordinated multidisciplinary efforts involving cooperation between
scientists, financial institutions and industries will be required. At the global level,
this may mean collaboration between research institutions in different countries, with
funding at the intergovernmental level, possibly supported by similar collaboration at the
national level. Research and development support will also need to be strengthened,
together with the mechanisms for providing the transfer of relevant technology.
(c) Human resource development
16.19. Training and technology transfer is needed at the global level, with regions and
countries having access to, and participation in exchange of, information and expertise,
particularly indigenous or traditional knowledge and related biotechnology. It is
essential to create or enhance endogenous capabilities in developing countries to enable
them to participate actively in the processes of biotechnology production. The training of
personnel could be undertaken at three levels:
(a) That of scientists required for basic and product-oriented research;
(b) That of health personnel (to be trained in the safe use of new products) and of
science managers required for complex intermultidisciplinary research;
(c) That of tertiary-level technical workers required for delivery in the field.
(d) Capacity-building*
C. Enhancing protection of the environment
Basis for action
16.20. Environmental protection is an integral component of sustainable development.
The environment is threatened in all its biotic and abiotic components: animals, plants,
microbes and ecosystems comprising biological diversity; water, soil and air, which form
the physical components of habitats and ecosystems; and all the interactions between the
components of biodiversity and their sustaining habitats and ecosystems. With the
continued increase in the use of chemicals, energy and non-renewable resources by an
* See programme area E.
expanding global population, associated environmental problems will also increase.
Despite increasing efforts to prevent waste accumulation and to promote recycling, the
amount of environmental damage caused by overconsumption, the quantities of waste
generated and the degree of unsustainable land use appear likely to continue growing.
16.21. The need for a diverse genetic pool of plant, animal and microbial germ plasm
for sustainable development is well established. Biotechnology is one of many tools that
can play an important role in supporting the rehabilitation of degraded ecosystems and
landscapes. This may be done through the development of new techniques for reforestation
and afforestation, germ plasm conservation, and cultivation of new plant varieties.
Biotechnology can also contribute to the study of the effects exerted on the remaining
organisms and on other organisms by organisms introduced into ecosystems.
Objectives
16.22. The aim of this programme is to prevent, halt and reverse environmental
degradation through the appropriate use of biotechnology in conjunction with other
technologies, while supporting safety procedures as an integral component of the
programme. Specific objectives include the inauguration as soon as possible of specific
programmes with specific targets:
(a) To adopt production processes making optimal use of natural resources, by recycling
biomass, recovering energy and minimizing waste generation; 6/
(b) To promote the use of biotechnologies, with emphasis on bio-remediation of land and
water, waste treatment, soil conservation, reforestation, afforestation and land
rehabilitation; 7/ 8/
(c) To apply biotechnologies and their products to protect environmental integrity with
a view to long-term ecological security.
Activities
(a) Management-related activities
16.23. Governments at the appropriate level, with the support of relevant international
and regional organizations, the private sector, non-governmental organizations and
academic and scientific institutions, should: (a) Develop environmentally sound
alternatives and improvements for environmentally damaging production processes;
(b) Develop applications to minimize the requirement for unsustainable synthetic
chemical input and to maximize the use of environmentally appropriate products, including
natural products (see programme area A);
(c) Develop processes to reduce waste generation, treat waste before disposal and make
use of biodegradable materials;
(d) Develop processes to recover energy and provide renewable energy sources, animal
feed and raw materials from recycling organic waste and biomass;
(e) Develop processes to remove pollutants from the environment, including accidental
oil spills, where conventional techniques are not available or are expensive, inefficient
or inadequate;
(f) Develop processes to increase the availability of planting materials, particularly
indigenous varieties, for use in afforestation and reforestation and to improve
sustainable yields from forests;
(g) Develop applications to increase the availability of stress-tolerant planting
material for land rehabilitation and soil conservation;
(h) Promote the use of integrated pest management based on the judicious use of
bio-control agents;
(i) Promote the appropriate use of bio-fertilizers within national fertilizer
programmes;
(j) Promote the use of biotechnologies relevant to the conservation and scientific
study of biological diversity and the sustainable use of biological resources;
(k) Develop easily applicable technologies for the treatment of sewage and organic
waste;
(l) Develop new technologies for rapid screening of organisms for useful biological
properties;
(m) Promote new biotechnologies for tapping mineral resources in an environmentally
sustainable manner.
(b) Data and information
16.24. Steps should be taken to increase access both to existing information about
biotechnology and to facilities based on global databases. (c) International and regional
cooperation and coordination
16.25. Governments at the appropriate level, with the support of relevant international
and regional organizations, should:
(a) Strengthen research, training and development capabilities, particularly in
developing countries, to support the activities outlined in this programme area;
(b) Develop mechanisms for scaling up and disseminating environmentally sound
biotechnologies of high environmental importance, especially in the short term, even
though those biotechnologies may have limited commercial potential;
(c) Enhance cooperation, including transfer of biotechnology, between participating
countries for capacity-building;
(d) Develop appropriate safety procedures based on programme area D, taking account of
ethical considerations.
Means of implementation
(a) Financing and cost evaluation
16.26. The Conference secretariat has estimated the average total annual cost
(1993-2000) of implementing the activities of this programme to be about $1 billion,
including about $10 million from the international community on grant or concessional
terms. These are indicative and order-of-magnitude estimates only and have not been
reviewed by Governments. Actual costs and financial terms, including any that are
non-concessional, will depend upon, inter alia, the specific strategies and programmes
Governments decide upon for implementation.
(b) Scientific and technological means*
(c) Human resource development
16.27. The activities for this programme area will increase the demand for trained
personnel. Support for existing training programmes needs to be increased, for example, at
the university and technical institute level, as well as the exchange of trained personnel
between countries and regions. New and additional training programmes also need to be
developed, for example, for technical and support personnel. There is also an urgent need
to improve the level of understanding of biological principles and their policy
implications among decision makers in Governments, and financial and other institutions.
(d) Capacity-building
16.28. Relevant institutions will need to have the responsibility for undertaking, and
the capacity (political, financial and workforce) to undertake, the above-mentioned
activities and to be dynamic in response to new biotechnological developments (see
programme area E).
* See paras. 16.23-16.25 above.
D. Enhancing safety and developing international mechanisms for cooperation
Basis for action
16.29. There is a need for further development of internationally agreed principles on
risk assessment and management of all aspects of biotechnology, which should build upon
those developed at the national level. Only when adequate and transparent safety and
border-control procedures are in place will the community at large be able to derive
maximum benefit from, and be in a much better position to accept the potential benefits
and risks of, biotechnology. Several fundamental principles could underlie many of these
safety procedures, including primary consideration of the organism, building on the
principle of familiarity, applied in a flexible framework, taking into account national
requirements and recognizing that the logical progression is to start with a step-by-step
and case-by-case approach, but also recognizing that experience has shown that in many
instances a more comprehensive approach should be used, based on the experiences of the
first period, leading, inter alia, to streamlining and categorizing; complementary
consideration of risk assessment and risk management; and classification into contained
use or release to the environment.
Objectives
16.30. The aim of this programme area is to ensure safety in biotechnology development,
application, exchange and transfer through international agreement on principles to be
applied on risk assessment and management, with particular reference to health and
environmental considerations, including the widest possible public participation and
taking account of ethical considerations.
Activities
16.31. The proposed activities for this programme area call for close international
cooperation. They should build upon planned or existing activities to accelerate the
environmentally sound application of biotechnology, especially in developing countries.
(a) Management-related activities
16.32. Governments at the appropriate level, with the support of relevant international
and regional organizations, the private sector, non-governmental organizations and
academic and scientific institutions, should:
(a) Make the existing safety procedures widely available by collecting the existing
information and adapting it to the specific needs of different countries and regions;
(b) Further develop, as necessary, the existing safety procedures to promote scientific
development and categorization in the areas of risk assessment and risk management
(information requirements; databases; procedures for assessing risks and conditions of
release; establishment of safety conditions; monitoring and inspections, taking account of
ongoing national, regional and international initiatives and avoiding duplication wherever
possible);
(c) Compile, update and develop compatible safety procedures into a framework of
internationally agreed principles as a basis for guidelines to be applied on safety in
biotechnology, including consideration of the need for and feasibility of an international
agreement, and promote information exchange as a basis for further development, drawing on
the work already undertaken by international or other expert bodies;
(d) Undertake training programmes at the national and regional levels on the
application of the proposed technical guidelines;
(e) Assist in exchanging information about the procedures required for safe handling
and risk management and about the conditions of release of the products of biotechnology,
and cooperate in providing immediate assistance in cases of emergencies that may arise in
conjunction with the use of biotechnology products.
(b) Data and information*
(c) International and regional cooperation and coordination
16.33. Governments at the appropriate level, with the support of the relevant
international and regional organizations, should raise awareness of the relative benefits
and risks of biotechnology.
16.34. Further activities should include the following (see also para. 16.32):
(a) Organizing one or more regional meetings between countries to identify further
practical steps to facilitate international cooperation in bio-safety;
(b) Establishing an international network incorporating national, regional and global
contact points;
(c) Providing direct assistance upon request through the international network, using
information networks, databases and information procedures;
(d) Considering the need for and feasibility of internationally agreed guidelines on
safety in biotechnology releases, including risk assessment and risk management, and
considering studying the feasibility of guidelines which could facilitate national
legislation on liability and compensation.
* See paras. 16.32 and 16.33.
Means of implementation
(a) Financing and cost evaluation
16.35. The UNCED secretariat has estimated the average total annual cost (1993-2000) of
implementing the activities of this programmes to be about $2 million from the
international community on grant or concessional terms. These are indicative and
order-of-magnitude estimates only and have not been reviewed by Governments. Actual costs
and financial terms, including any that are non-concessional, will depend upon, inter
alia, the specific strategies and programmes Governments decide upon for implementation.
(b) Scientific and technological means*
(c) Human resource development*
(d) Capacity-building
16.36. Adequate international technical and financial assistance should be provided and
technical cooperation to developing countries facilitated in order to build up technical,
managerial, planning and administrative capacities at the national level to support the
activities in this programme area (see also programme area E).
E. Establishing enabling mechanisms for the development and the environmentally sound
application of biotechnology
Basis for action
16.37. The accelerated development and application of biotechnologies, particularly in
developing countries, will require a major effort to build up institutional capacities at
the national and regional levels. In developing countries, enabling factors such as
training capacity, know-how, research and development facilities and funds, industrial
building capacity, capital (including venture capital) protection of intellectual property
rights, and expertise in areas including marketing research, technology assessment,
socio-economic assessment and safety assessment are frequently inadequate. Efforts will
therefore need to be made to build up capacities in these and other areas and to match
such efforts with appropriate levels of financial support. There is therefore a need to
strengthen the endogenous capacities of developing countries by means of new international
initiatives to support research in order to speed up the development and application of
both new and conventional biotechnologies to serve the needs of sustainable development at
the local, national and regional levels. National mechanisms to allow for informed comment
by the public with regard to biotechnology research and application should be part of the
process.
* See para. 16.32.
16.38. Some activities at the national, regional and global levels already address the
issues outlined in programme areas A, B, C and D, as well as the provisioin of advice to
individual countries on the development of national guidelines and systems for the
implementation of those guidelines. These activities are generally uncoordinated, however,
involving many different organizations, priorities, constituencies, time-scales, funding
sources and resource constraints. There is a need for a much more cohesive and coordinated
approach to harness available resources in the most effective manner. As with most new
technologies, research in biotechnology and the application of its findings could have
significant positive and negative socio-economic as well as cultural impacts. These
impacts should be carefully identified in the earliest phases of the development of
biotechnology in order to enable appropriate management of the consequences of
transferring biotechnology.
Objectives
16.39. The objectives are as follows:
(a) To promote the development and application of biotechnologies, with special
emphasis on developing countries, by:
(i) Enhancing existing efforts at the national, regional and global levels;
(ii) Providing the necessary support for biotechnology, particularly research and
product development, at the national, regional and international levels;
(iii) Raising public awareness regarding the relative beneficial aspects of and risks
related to biotechnology, to contribute to sustainable development;
(iv) Helping to create a favourable climate for investments, industrial
capacity-building and distribution/marketing;
(v) Encouraging the exchange of scientists among all countries and discouraging the
"brain drain";
(vi) Recognizing and fostering the traditional methods and knowledge of indigenous
peoples and their communities and ensuring the opportunity for their participation in the
economic and commercial benefits arising from developments in biotechnology; 9/
(b) To identify ways and means of enhancing current efforts, building wherever possible
on existing enabling mechanisms, particularly regional, to determine the precise nature of
the needs for additional initiatives, particularly in respect of developing countries, and
to develop appropriate response strategies, including proposals for any new international
mechanisms;
(c) To establish or adapt appropriate mechanisms for safety appraisal and risk
assessment at the local, regional and international levels, as appropriate.
Activities
(a) Management-related activities
16.40. Governments at the appropriate level, with the support of international and
regional organizations, the private sector, non-governmental organizations and academic
and scientific institutions, should:
(a) Develop policies and mobilize additional resources to facilitate greater access to
the new biotechnologies, particularly by and among developing countries;
(b) Implement programmes to create greater awareness of the potential and relative
benefits and risks of the environmentally sound application of biotechnology among the
public and key decision makers;
(c) Undertake an urgent review of existing enabling mechanisms, programmes and
activities at the national, regional and global levels to identify strengths, weaknesses
and gaps, and to assess the priority needs of developing countries;
(d) Undertake an urgent follow-up and critical review to identify ways and means of
strengthening endogenous capacities within and among developing countries for the
environmentally sound application of biotechnology, including, as a first step, ways to
improve existing mechanisms, particularly at the regional level, and, as a subsequent
step, the consideration of possible new international mechanisms, such as regional
biotechnology centres;
(e) Develop strategic plans for overcoming targeted constraints by means of appropriate
research, product development and marketing;
(f) Establish additional quality-assurance standards for biotechnology applications and
products, where necessary.
(b) Data and information
16.41. The following activities should be undertaken: facilitation of access to
existing information dissemination systems, especially among developing countries;
improvement of such access where appropriate; and consideration of the development of a
directory of information.
(c) International and regional cooperation and coordination
16.42. Governments at the appropriate level, with the assistance of international and
regional organizations, should develop appropriate new initiatives to identify priority
areas for research based on specific problems and facilitate access to new
biotechnologies, particularly by and among developing countries, among relevant
undertakings within those countries, in order to strengthen endogenous capacities and to
support the building of research and institutional capacity in those countries.
Means of implementation
(a) Financing and cost evaluation
16.43. The Conference secretariat has estimated the average total annual cost
(1993-2000) of implementing the activities of this programme to be about $5 million from
the international community on grant or concessional terms. These are indicative and
order-of-magnitude estimates only and have not been reviewed by Governments. Actual costs
and financial terms, including any that are non-concessional, will depend upon, inter
alia, the specific strategies and programmes Governments decide upon for implementation.
(b) Scientific and technological means
16.44. Workshops, symposia, seminars and other exchanges among the scientific community
at the regional and global levels, on specific priority themes, will need to be organized,
making full use of the existing scientific and technological manpower in each country for
bringing about such exchanges.
(c) Human resource development
16.45. Personnel development needs will need to be identified and additional training
programmes developed at the national, regional and global levels, especially in developing
countries. These should be supported by increased training at all levels, graduate,
postgraduate and post-doctoral, as well as by the training of technicians and support
staff, with particular reference to the generation of trained manpower in consultant
services, design, engineering and marketing research. Training programmes for lecturers
training scientists and technologists in advanced research institutions in different
countries throughout the world will also need to be developed, and systems giving
appropriate rewards, incentives and recognition to scientists and technologists will need
to be instituted (see para. 16.44). Conditions of service will also need to be improved at
the national level in developing countries to encourage and nurture trained manpower with
a view to retaining that manpower locally. Society should be informed of the social and
cultural impact of the development and application of biotechnology. (d) Capacity-building
16.46. Biotechnology research and development is undertaken both under highly
sophisticated conditions and at the practical level in many countries. Efforts will be
needed to ensure that the necessary infrastructure facilities for research, extension and
technology activities are available on a decentralized basis. Global and regional
collaboration for basic and applied research and development will also need to be further
enhanced and every effort should be made to ensure that existing national and regional
facilities are fully utilized. Such institutions already exist in some countries and it
should be possible to make use of them for training purposes and joint research projects.
Strengthening of universities, technical schools and local research institutions for the
development of biotechnologies and extension services for their application will need to
be developed, especially in developing countries.
Notes
1/ See chap. 15 (Conservation of biological diversity).
2/ See chap. 14 (Promoting sustainable agriculture and rural development).
3/ See chap. 11 (Combating deforestation).
4/ See chap. 34 (Transfer of environmentally sound technology, cooperation and
capacity-building).
5/ See chap. 6 (Protecting and promoting human health conditions).
6/ See chap. 21 (Environmentally sound management of solid wastes and
sewage-related issues).
7/ See chap. 10 (Integrated approach to the planning and management of land
resources).
8/ See chap. 18 (Protection of the quality and supply of freshwater resources:
application of integrated approaches to the development, management and use of water
resources).
9/ See chap. 26 (Recognizing and strengthening the role of indigenous people and
their communities).
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