Biotechnology in the Context of the Convention on Biological Diversity: Review of the Implementation of Article 19 of this Agreement

Abstract

Modern biotechnology is one of the most important technological tools nowadays, and its developmentinvolves discussions related to food and environmental safety of their products. These discussions occur within various international organizations, originating different Agreements about the theme. One ofthe most important is the Convention on Biological Diversity – CBD – and its associated agreement,the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety. This work sought to identify how biotechnology is handled in theCBD, analyzing the implementation of Article 19 and its consequences in terms of discussions about theregulatory framework related to biosafety. It presents the concept of biotechnology and its implications,the approach to the subject under the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Cartagena Protocol,and the Brazilian law on biosafety. This work concluded that, although the purpose of Article 19 of theCBD was much broader, namely, regulating the handling of biotechnology and distribution of benefitsamong member countries of this Agreement, such claims were not obtained, restricting the discussionto the scope of issues related to GMO biosafety. The challenge now is to expand this discussion so thatthe benefits of this new technology can actually be achieved and distributed both between developedcountries and developing countries, always in a sustainable manner.