FAO has prepared an extensive series of documents for the FAO international technical conference on Agricultural Biotechnologies in Developing Countries (ABDC-10) that takes place in Guadalajara, Mexico on 1-4 March 2010. Five of them are sector-specific, covering the current status and options for biotechnologies in developing countries in crops, livestock, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture and, finally, in food processing and food safety. A sixth document deals with policy options for agricultural biotechnologies in developing countries and is organised in three broad sections: targeting agricultural biotechnologies to the poor; enabling policies for agricultural biotechnologies; and ensuring access to the benefits of agricultural biotechnologies. These documents are long and available in English. For each one, an easy-to-read synthesis has also been prepared, and is provided in Arabic, Chinese, English, French and Spanish. A seventh document, building on the previous six documents, has also been published which synthesizes the lessons learned and options available to developing countries for making informed decisions regarding adoption of agricultural biotechnologies within their national food security and rural development plans and policies. It also presents a set of Priorities for Action for the international community regarding agricultural biotechnologies for food security in developing countries, focusing on policy- and capacity-development actions. This document is also provided in five languages. ABDC-10 is hosted by the Government of Mexico and co-sponsored by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), the Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR), the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) and the World Bank are major partners in this initiative. See http://www.fao.org/biotech/abdc/backdocs/ or contact [email protected] for more information.

29/01/2010