Report of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme on Its 11th Special Session

A/RES/65/162View PDF

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 20g Report of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme on its 11th special session, published in 2011.

What other versions does this mandate have?

6 versions · 2001–2011

Year	Symbol	Title	Word length	Text similarity
2011	A/RES/65/162	Report of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme on its 11th special session	2,249	23%Compare
2009	A/RES/63/220	Report of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme on its 10th special session	1,173	44%Compare
2007	A/RES/61/205	Report of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme on its 9th special session	853	29%Compare
2005	A/RES/59/226	Report of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme on its 8th special session	1,019	28%Compare
2003	A/RES/57/251	Report of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme on its 7th special session	619	22%Compare

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

1 report · 2004

Year	Symbol	Title		Mandate resolution
2004	A/59/262	Universal membership of the Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum of the United Nations Environment Programme report of the Secretary-General		A/RES/57/251

What’s in this document?

24 operative paragraphs

Takes note of the report of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme on its eleventh special session¹⁰ and the decisions contained therein;¹¹

¹⁰Official Records of the General Assembly, Sixty-fifth Session, Supplement No. 25 (A/65/25).

¹¹Ibid., annex I.

Welcomes the Nusa Dua Declaration of 26 February 2010Error: Reference source not found as a contribution to the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, to be held in 2012, and calls for the active and effective participation of the United Nations Environment Programme in the preparatory process of the Conference;

Recognizes that the ratification and implementation of relevant multilateral environmental agreements contribute to more effective international environmental governance and better protection and management of the global environment, and in this context invites Member States to ratify and implement relevant multilateral environmental agreements;

Welcomes the outcome¹² of the Simultaneous Extraordinary Meetings of the Conferences of the Parties to the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal,¹³ the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade¹⁴ and the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants,¹⁵ held in Bali, Indonesia, from 22 to 24 February 2010, also welcomes the consultative process on financing options for chemicals and wastes and supports further efforts through the United Nations Environment Programme to continue these discussions, and in this regard encourages cooperation and coordination among the secretariats of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm conventions and support for Governments in their efforts to implement, comply with and enforce these multilateral environmental agreements;

¹²See UNEP/FAO/CHW/RC/POPS/EXCOPS.1/8.

¹³United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 1673, No. 28911.

¹⁴Ibid., vol. 2244, No. 39973.

¹⁵Ibid., vol. 2256, No. 40214.

Stresses the importance of the implementation of the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management,¹⁶ particularly through its Quick Start Programme;¹⁷

¹⁶See the report of the International Conference on Chemicals Management on the work of its first session (SAICM/ICCM.1/7), annexes I–III.

¹⁷Ibid., annex IV, resolution I/4.

Notes with appreciation the progress achieved at the first session of the intergovernmental negotiating committee to prepare a global legally binding instrument on mercury, held in Stockholm from 7 to 11 June 2010,¹⁸ and encourages further efforts towards a successful conclusion to the negotiations, and invites the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme to continue to ensure full support for the negotiation process with the goal of completing the instrument prior to the twenty-seventh session of the Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum with the aim of agreeing on a legally binding instrument on mercury, to include provisions, among others, aimed at reducing atmospheric emissions of mercury and to specify arrangements for capacity-building and technical and financial assistance, recognizing that the ability of developing countries and countries with economies in transition to implement some legal obligations effectively under a legally binding instrument is dependent upon the availability of capacity-building and adequate technical and financial assistance;

¹⁸See UNEP(DTIE)/Hg/INC.1/21.

Recognizes the important role played by the regional centres of the Basel and Stockholm conventions, particularly in the implementation of international commitments and in the area of technology transfer, and in this regard encourages Member States and other stakeholders to promote the full and coordinated use of the centres to strengthen the regional delivery of assistance for the implementation of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm conventions;

Takes note of United Nations Environment Programme Governing Council decision SS.XI/1 of 26 February 2010 on international environmental governance, the set of options for improving international environmental governance identified by the consultative group of ministers or high-level representatives referred to therein and the invitation by the Governing Council to the President of the Council to transmit the set of options to the General Assembly at its sixty-fourth session as an input to the continuing process of improving international environmental governance,Error: Reference source not found and notes the ongoing work of the consultative group of ministers or high-level representatives, which will present its final report to the Governing Council at its twenty-sixth session in anticipation of the contribution of the Council;

Encourages the United Nations Environment Programme to support the ongoing work of the Joint Liaison Group of the secretariats and offices of the relevant subsidiary bodies of the Convention on Biological Diversity,¹⁹ the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Those Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, Particularly in Africa,²⁰ and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change²¹ (“the Rio Conventions”) and the Liaison Group of Biodiversity-related Conventions, acknowledges the importance of improving coherence in the implementation of the Rio Conventions, recognizes the importance of enhancing synergies among the biodiversity-related conventions, without prejudice to their specific objectives, and encourages the conferences of the parties to the biodiversity-related multilateral environmental agreements to consider strengthening efforts in this regard, taking into account relevant experiences and bearing in mind the respective independent legal status and mandates of all these instruments;

¹⁹United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 1760, No. 30619.

²⁰Ibid., vol. 1954, No. 33480.

²¹Ibid., vol. 1771, No. 30822.

Underlines the need to further advance and accelerate the full implementation of the Bali Strategic Plan for Technology Support and Capacity-buildingError: Reference source not found with a view to achieving its objectives in the areas of capacity-building and technology support for developing countries and countries with economies in transition, invites relevant United Nations funds and programmes and the specialized agencies and the secretariats of multilateral environmental agreements to consider mainstreaming the Bali Strategic Plan in their overall activities, and calls upon Governments and other stakeholders in a position to do so to provide the funding and technical assistance necessary to further advance and fully implement the Bali Strategic Plan;

Recognizes that South-South cooperation is not a substitute for, but rather a complement to, North-South cooperation, and in this regard requests the United Nations Environment Programme to deepen its cooperation with related United Nations agencies, regions, subregions and existing South-South cooperation initiatives to develop joint activities and synergies of capacity in advancing South-South cooperation in support of capacity-building and technology support in the context of the Bali Strategic Plan;

Invites the United Nations Environment Programme to contribute, notably by providing ideas and proposals reflecting its competencies, experiences and lessons learned, to the preparatory process of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development;

Reiterates the continuing need for the United Nations Environment Programme to conduct up-to-date, comprehensive, scientifically credible and policy-relevant global environment assessments, in close consultation with Member States, in order to support decision-making processes at all levels, and in this regard notes that the fifth report in the Global Environment Outlook series and its related summary for policymakers is currently under development, and stresses the need to enhance the policy relevance of the Outlook by, inter alia, identifying policy options to speed up the achievement of the internationally agreed goals and to inform global and regional processes and meetings where progress towards the agreed goals will be discussed, including the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development;

Emphasizes the need to further enhance coordination and cooperation among the relevant United Nations organizations in the promotion of the environmental dimension of sustainable development and to enhance cooperation between the United Nations Environment Programme and regional and subregional organizations, and welcomes the continued active participation of the Programme in the United Nations Development Group and the Environment Management Group, as well as in the United Nations exercises at the country level, including United Nations Development Assistance Framework processes and “Delivering as One” programmes for those countries implementing this initiative;

Reiterates the instrumental role of regional offices of the United Nations Environment Programme in assisting countries in mainstreaming their environmental priorities and maintaining the strategic presence of the Programme at the national and regional levels as part of the continued efforts of the Programme in shifting emphasis from delivery of outputs to achievement of results within its budget and programme of work, and calls for increased support to strengthen the human, financial and programmatic capacities of all regional offices;

Notes the cooperation of the Environment Management Group, including by working with the United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination and its subsidiary bodies, in enhancing, inter alia, cooperation in programming environmental activities in the United Nations system in the areas of biodiversity and land degradation, including by supporting the implementation of the strategic plans of the secretariats of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification and the Convention on Biological Diversity, including the post-2010 biodiversity targets;

Takes note of United Nations Environment Programme Governing Council decision SS.XI/4 of 26 February 2010 entitled “Intergovernmental science-policy platform on biodiversity and ecosystem services”,Error: Reference source not found the Busan outcome of the third ad hoc intergovernmental and multi-stakeholder meeting on an intergovernmental science-policy platform on biodiversity and ecosystem services, held in Busan, Republic of Korea, from 7 to 11 June 2010,²² the decision entitled “Science-policy interface on biodiversity, ecosystem services and human well-being and consideration of the outcome of the intergovernmental meetings” adopted by the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity at its tenth meeting, held in Nagoya, Japan, from 18 to 29 October 2010,²³ and the decision on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and the intergovernmental science-policy platform on biodiversity and ecosystem services adopted by the Executive Board of that Organization at its one hundred and eighty-fifth session,²⁴ and requests the United Nations Environment Programme, without prejudice to the final institutional arrangements for the intergovernmental science-policy platform on biodiversity and ecosystem services and in consultation with all relevant organizations and bodies, in order to fully operationalize the platform, to convene a plenary meeting providing for the full and effective participation of all Member States, in particular representatives from developing countries, to determine modalities and institutional arrangements for the platform at the earliest opportunity;

²²A/65/383, annex.

²³See UNEP/CBD/COP/10/27, annex, decision X/11.

²⁴United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Decisions Adopted by the Executive Board at its One Hundred and Eighty-fifth Session, Paris, 5–21 October 2010 (185 EX/Decisions), decision 43.

Calls upon international and bilateral donors and other countries in a position to do so to support the full and effective participation of representatives from developing countries in the plenary meeting;

Welcomes the activities undertaken by the United Nations Environment Programme with a view to strengthening the protection and sustainable management of marine and coastal ecosystems and further mainstreaming the marine and coastal strategy of the Programme in line with the United Nations Millennium Declaration²⁵ and the Mauritius Strategy for the Further Implementation of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States;²⁶

²⁵See resolution 55/2.

²⁶Report of the International Meeting to Review the Implementation of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, Port Louis, Mauritius, 10–14 January 2005 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.05.II.A.4 and corrigendum), chap. I, resolution 1, annex II.

Also welcomes the efforts undertaken to date by the United Nations Environment Programme in response to the devastating impact of the earthquake of 12 January 2010 on the people, economy and environment of Haiti, and in this regard urges the Programme, in coordination with the United Nations country team, to continue to perform its key role in ensuring that environmental considerations are mainstreamed into the overall humanitarian relief and recovery programme;

Further welcomes the increased contributions to the Environment Fund, and reiterates its invitation to Governments that are in a position to do so to increase their contributions to the Fund;

Reiterates the need for stable, adequate and predictable financial resources for the United Nations Environment Programme, and, in accordance with resolution 2997 (XXVII), underlines the need to consider the adequate reflection of all the administrative and management costs of the Programme in the context of the United Nations regular budget;

Also reiterates the importance of the Nairobi headquarters location of the United Nations Environment Programme, and requests the Secretary-General to keep the resource needs of the Programme and the United Nations Office at Nairobi under review so as to permit the delivery, in an effective manner, of necessary services to the Programme and to the other United Nations organs and organizations in Nairobi;

Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its sixty-sixth session, under the item entitled “Sustainable development”, a sub-item entitled “Report of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme on its twenty-sixth session”.

Report of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme on Its 11th Special Session

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

What other versions does this mandate have?

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