What is the difference between the Biosafety Clearing-House (BCH) and the Clearing House Mechanism (CHM) of the CBD?
The Clearing-House Mechanism (CHM) of the Convention on Biological Diversity (available at http://www.cbd.int/chm/), was established in accordance with Article 18(3) of the Convention to promote and facilitate technical and scientific cooperation on all biodiversity issues. The Biosafety Clearing-House (BCH), on the other hand, was established under Article 20 of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety with a special focus on the information that must be exchanged under the Protocol. One of the major differences between the CHM and the BCH is that, with regards to the latter, Article 20 of the Protocol enumerates a variety of categories of information which Parties to the Protocol are legally obliged to provide through the BCH. There are no such legal requirements for Parties to the Convention to make information available through the CHM.
