Biosafety Guidelines of Bangladesh, 2005.

The Biosafety Guidelines, consisting of four sections divided into four Chapters and eight Annexes, are applicable to all research and development activities of modern biotechnology conducted in laboratories of the government research institutes, state enterprises, universities, international organizations located in Bangladesh, private companies or non-governmental organizations. It applies to laboratory and field trial, trans-boundary movement, transit, handling and use of all GMOs/LMOs that may have adverse effects on the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity, taking also into account risks to human health.
In accordance with the precautionary approach contained in Principle 15 of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, the objective of this Guideline is to contribute to ensuring an adequate level of protection in the laboratory, field trial, safe transfer, handling, use and trans boundary movement of GMOs/LMOs as part of modern biotechnology that may have adverse effects on the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity, taking also into account risks to human and animal health. On the basis of the precautionary principle, the Guidelines provide a framework for the following aspects: (a) Develop acts, rules, standards and scientific database, codes of practice and monitoring capabilities and enforcement manuals for assessing risk in the research and development and release of GMOs/LMOs into the environment. (b) Provide the basis to ensure safety of the developers and end-users of modern biotechnological products. (c) Promote the development and enforcement of regulations in harmony with national priorities and international approaches. (d) Foster a favourable climate for developing and accelerating innovation and for adopting sustainable biotechnology products and processes. This guideline covers aspects of risk assessment and safety requirements needed for undertaking (a)Laboratory work, (b) Field trial and (c) Commercial use, involving i) Microorganisms ii) plants and iii) Animals. Guidelines for laboratory work specify the experiments to be categorized as belonging to different biosafety levels like work bearing minimal risk, work bearing low risk, work bearing considerable risk and work bearing high risk and what precautionary measures should be taken to avert such risk.
The Ministry of Environment and Forest (MOEF), being the competent national authority and national focal point to implement Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), shall establish a National Committee on Biosafety (NCB) in order to ensure environmentally safe management of modern biotechnological development including research and development, introduction, use and trans-boundary movement of GMOs/LMOs. The Guidelines are divided as follows: Scopes and Objectives of Biosafety Guidelines (Chap. I); Institutional Arrangements (Chap. II); General Provisions on Biosafety (Chap. III); Physico-Chemical and Biological Containments: Procedures and Facilities (Chap. IV).