Notification 2010-059

Dear Madam/Sir, In response to the requirement under Article 27 of the Biosafety Protocol, the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Cartagena Protocol (COP-MOP) established, at its first meeting held from 23 to 27 February 2004 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, an Open-ended Ad Hoc Working Group of Legal and Technical Experts on Liability and Redress (decision BS-I/8). After holding five meetings, the Working Group accomplished its work in accordance with its terms of reference and submitted its final report to the fourth meeting of the COP-MOP that took place from 12 to 16 May 2008 in Bonn, Germany. The fourth meeting of the COP-MOP noted with appreciation the work undertaken by the Working Group and decided (decision BS-IV/12) to establish a Group of Friends of the Co-Chairs with a mandate to further negotiate international rules and procedures in the field of liability and redress for damage resulting from transboundary movements of living modified organisms on the basis of the annex attached to the decision. The Group of Friends of the Co-Chairs has held two meetings to-date and has been working, inter alia, towards a legally binding instrument in the form of a supplementary protocol subject to final decision by the COP-MOP. At the conclusion of its second meeting held from 8 to 12 February 2010, the Group requested the Executive Secretary to communicate to Parties to the Protocol the text of a proposed supplementary protocol annexed to its report (UNEP/CBD/BS/GF-L&R/2/3), six months prior to the fifth meeting of the COP-MOP pursuant to paragraph 3 of Article 28 of the Convention on Biological Diversity. Accordingly, I am pleased to communicate to you the text of the proposed supplementary protocol to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety attached herewith for your attention and appropriate action in view of the coming meeting of the COP-MOP from 11 to 15 October 2010 in Nagoya, Japan. At this meeting, the text will be further considered with a view to its adoption. The text is also available in all other United Nations languages at the Secretariat’s website at this link: http://www.cbd.int/doc/?meeting=BSGFLR-02 I would also like to use this opportunity to kindly remind Parties attending the fifth meeting of the COP-MOP to ensure that their representatives have the necessary credentials that allow them to participate in the adoption of the text of a treaty. Please accept, Madam/Sir, the assurances of my highest consideration.

Executive Secretary

To: Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (CPB) National focal points, CBD National Focal Points (where CPB focal points have not yet been designated)