BIODIVERSITY PROTECTION – THE PRIORITY OF ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

The Minister of the Environment of the SR deals here with the necessity of solving the problems related to genetically modified organisms (GMOs). The first international meeting concerning GMOs was held in Madrid in 1995. Based on the results of the expert group the 2^nd Meeting of the Conference of the Convention on Biological Diversity has established the work group for the biological safety. The task of this group was the development of the draft Cartagen Protocol on Biological Safety for the cross-border movement and handling of GMOs. In January 2000 the 1^st extraordinary meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention was held in Montreal where the wording of the Cartagen Protocol on Biological Safety was finally approved. The text of the Protocol was signed at the meeting of the parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in Nairobi in May 2000 and the Slovak Republic is one of the first countries that have signed it.