Invasive Alien Species

Invasive alien species are species that are introduced and/or spread outside their natural distributions. They threaten native species and the overall biological diversity of the ecosystems they invade. The annual cost of damage from the spread of invasive alien species is conservatively estimated at hundreds of billions of dollars and could rise to more than one trillion. Invasive alien species are among the biggest threats to global food security and human health, and impact negatively on global trade, transport and more broadly, economic development. 

JBF support has helped to enhance prevention of invasive alien species globally by raising awareness of laboratory personnel on the requirements of the Cartagena Protocol, enhancing national coordination capabilities among border control officials and competent national authorities for detection, and improving capacities in the Caribbean and Pacific Small Island Developing States to conduct border control on living modified organisms.