The legislation was approved by the National People’s Assembly (Parliament) in October 2020, as the issue was the focus of attention in the fight against the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus and Covid-19.

The law in question establishes the creation of a national mechanism that will ensure the functioning of early warning systems, research and the publication of information.

Among other issues, it emphasizes the potential risks during research, development and application of biotechnology, laboratory security, human and biological genetic resources, and the fight against bioterrorism and biological weapons threats.

The outbreak of Covid-19 highlighted the attention this sector requires and Chinese authorities sought to accelerate the legislative process to integrate it into the national security mechanism.

This step is part of efforts to correct breaches detected in laboratories with measures to prevent and respond to any eventuality that arises in them, especially those specialized in viruses.

In fact, the Ministry of Science and Technology recently issued a notice calling for raising awareness about the self-protection of workers in the sector, at a time when multiple studies of microorganisms are undertaken to find a vaccine against Covid-19.

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