The decision to finalise the NBF by December 2006 was taken at the first meeting of the National Coordination Committee on Biosafety held at the Ministry of Environment and Forest yesterday.

Biosafety refers to the maintenance of safe conditions in biological research to prevent harm to labs, field workers and the environment.

Sources involved in the NBF drafting process told The Daily Star that once Bangladesh puts all regulatory set-ups in place under a full-fledged biosafety framework, the land-strapped country will be free to produce, transfer and research genetically modified (GM) crops.

Official sources confirm that Bangladesh has four varieties on its priority list of GM crops drought and saline tolerant rice, late blight resistant potato, fruit and shoot borer resistant eggplant and pod borer resistant chickpea.

Rice Research Institute (BRRI) and Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) are at the final stage of testing GM rice and eggplant in greenhouse environment. They will then field-test those prior to releasing the GM varieties for commercial production.

Though a biosafety guideline was officially gazetted in 1999, it was re-modified in line with the Cartagena Protocol, to which Bangladesh is a signatory, and has been lying with the Prime Minister's Office for final approval for over six months now, sources said.

But as the guideline did not suffice to fully gear up Bangladesh in adopting and cultivating GM crops, the initiative to develop a National Biosafety Framework was taken up under joint funding of the Global Environmental Fund (GEF) and the government of Bangladesh.

Experts attending yesterday's meeting told The Daily Star that finalisation of the NBF will take care of all the issues concerning updating the quarantine law, biodiversity loss, biohazard risk management and food safety.

Besides, it will allow Bangladesh to have all its biosafety regulatory set-ups ready including a 'Biosafety Clearing House' (BCH) for ensuring safe trans-boundary movement of GMOs (genetically modified organisms).

Meanwhile, Agricultural Biotechnology Support Project II (ABSPII), funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), is already rendering support to Bangladesh in its pursuit of biotechnology. Cornell University of the USA is managing the project.

The ABSPII, implemented by a consortium of public and private sector institutions, focuses on safe and effective development and commercialisation of GM crops as a complement to traditional and organic agriculture in developing countries. The project will help boost food security, economic growth, nutrition and environmental quality in East and West Africa and in Indonesia, India, Bangladesh and the Philippines.

A handful of countries including the United States, Brazil, Argentina and China are now vigorously pursuing GM crops while a large part of Europe remains skeptic about the new technology fearing long-term side effects.