Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- As part of the implementation of the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On the Accession of the Republic of Uzbekistan to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to the Convention on Biological Diversity (Montreal, 29 January 2000)”, a corresponding government decision was made.

In accordance with the document, the role of the national coordinating center defined in the Cartagena Protocol is assigned to the Center for Genomics and Bioinformatics of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

This center organizes activities to analyze and summarize the results of scientific research in the field of safety of genetically modified organisms. Laboratory studies will be carried out to determine GMOs in food and agricultural products, feed and seeds.

The center’s tasks also include the implementation of scientifically based examinations regarding the safety of testing or the expected use of GMOs and products created on their basis.

In its activities, the Center will establish an exchange of information with organizations of foreign countries involved in biosafety issues. He will take part in the training and retraining, advanced training of personnel in the field of determining GMOs and assessing their impact on the environment.

A permanent relationship will be established with the Secretariat of the Convention on Biodiversity on biosafety issues, and proposals will be developed to improve the regulatory framework in this area.

In order to effectively fulfill the tasks assigned to the Center by resolution and the Cartagena Protocol, free international technical assistance will be attracted.