Assisting Bioethics Committees : 3rd and last training session in Jamaica

Provided as part of a training course developed over three years to support the efforts of Jamaica in strengthening its capacity in bioethics, this 3-day intensive training will focus on the practical application of the principles contained in the "Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights "(2005) with the objective of ensuring the responsiveness of the National Bioethics Committee established in October 2009 in Jamaica.

Created at the initiative of the Jamaica National Commission for UNESCO, it is one of the six national bioethics committees to be set up with the support of UNESCO in Latin America and the Caribbean. It is the only established committee until recently in an English-speaking Caribbean country, and, after this session, will be the 3rd National Bioethics Committee in the world to have completed the full training course conducted by UNESCO within the framework of the project "Assisting bioethics committees" (ABC), after those in Côte d'Ivoire and Kenya.

Two training sessions already took place in Kingston in 2009 and 2012. This final session will be delivered by international experts, and will provide members of the Jamaican Bioethics Committee with a varied programme covering environmental ethics; bioethics and sustainable development; bioethics and the administration of health services; bioethical issues related to reproductive health; questions related to decisions to be taken at the end of life; and bio-banks and the ethical issues raised by genetic samples.

This session will include the presentation of the different perspectives of the functioning of a national bioethics committee, such as communication with the public, collaboration with other national organizations and multilateral agreements.

The project "Assisting Bioethics Committees” (ABC) of UNESCO meets the ultimate objectives of the participating countries to adapt training to the needs of each country and each newly created institution.

Set up at UNESCO's initiative to reinforce capacity-building desired by the "Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights", the ABC programme is designed to assist the participating countries in developing their national bioethics committees by providing their members with training and practical tools.

The content of the training, provided by the staff of UNESCO and the international partner experts of the Organization, is based on a series of guides produced specifically by UNESCO in this regard, as well as the "Bioethics Core Curriculum" also designed by the Organization to popularize international standards of ethics and human rights by promoting their recognition and local adaptation.

Special attention is given to the promotion of gender equality, both in the content of the materials used for training and also in the development of action plans and agenda of the new national bioethics committees.

UNESCO pays also particular attention to addressing the requests from African countries for training, as well as for capacity-building projects in bioethics.

Since the implementation of the ABC project in 2008, trainings have been successfully conducted in 9 countries, in Kenya (2009, 2010 and 2011), Côte d’Ivoire (2009, 2011 and 2012), Gabon (2009 and 2012), Ghana (2009 and 2012), Guinea (2009 and 2012), Togo (2009 and 2012), El Salvador (2010 and 2012), Malawi (2012) and Chad (2012).