BWC Legislation Database

The Database

The BWC legislation database was launched in April 2002 as a result of VERTIC’s first survey of the status of states’ legislation to implement the BWC. It contains a selection of laws that states use to implement their obligations under the BWC. The database was substantially expanded in late 2010 with over 1500 additional laws and regulations located through open sources by NIM Programme staff. It is updated on a regular basis as new surveys are completed.

The database contains examples of legislation covering criminal provisions, biosafety and biosecurity measures, export control measures and enforcement. Some laws or regulations in our database may not have any direct relation to the BWC, however, and the NIM Programme does not endorse that legislation in this collection adequately enforces the BWC.

Contact the NIM Programme

If you have any additional entries or believe that some of the legislation is inaccurate or no longer in force, please contact VERTIC’s NIM Programme. Legislation surveys can also be provided to state authorities upon written request.

Disclaimer

While every effort has been taken to ensure the accuracy of all material reproduced in the database, the NIM Programme does not guarantee that it is free from error or omission. Any errors in an official version have been reproduced for authenticity. We encourage your comments on any errors or omissions and welcome the submission of additional legislative texts.

Every effort has been made to ensure that legislation in the database is the official version published by states in their national gazettes. However, only the copy officially published by the state concerned is deemed authentic.

For some legislation officially published in a language other than English, original versions and in some cases a translation have been provided. All such translations are unofficial, unless stated otherwise.