ENV/DEV/375

CONVENTION TO COMBAT DESERTIFICATION QUICKLY APPROACHING REQUIRED NUMBER OF RATIFICATION TO ENTER INTO FORCE

The Committee Chairman, Bo Kjellen (Sweden), said that development indicated that the first Conference of the Parties to the Convention would be held next September as scheduled. He therefore urged Committee members to continue to make progress on the work that had to be done in advance, and he urged those countries that had not yet ratified the Convention to do so. To participate in the Conference, he noted, countries had to register their ratification three months in advance.

Forty-three countries had already ratified the Convention, the Executive Secretary of its Interim Secretariat, Hama Arba Diallo, said, adding that a forty-fourth ratification was expected by next week.

The representative of Turkey said the process of ratification had been completed in his country, and the representative of Ghana said that in his country the process was almost complete. The representative of Argentina said that by the end of September his country would have deposited its ratification with the secretariat.

The representatives of China, Ethiopia, Mozambique and United Republic of Tanzania told the Committee that their countries would complete the ratification process by the end of this year. The representative of Brazil said his country would have ratified by the end of the first half of 1997. The representative of Cameroon said that the ratification process had been set in motion in his country.

Also this afternoon, Mr. Diallo reviewed documents before the Committee regarding the budget of the Interim Secretariat and funds that had been contributed to supplement regular budget resources (documents A/AC.241/59 and Add. 1). Mr. Diallo noted that the budget had mostly been devoted to staff and travel. According to the documents before the Committee, for 1996, $932,000 had been allotted for five Professional and four General Service posts along with related costs. The staff travel budget was $126,000.

Negotiating Committee - 2 - Press Release ENV/DEV/375 2nd Meeting (PM) 6 September 1996

Mr. Diallo further noted that extrabudgetary activities had been focused on the organization of national consciousness-raising seminars; subregional and regional consultations to facilitate the implementation of the Convention and promote actions during the interim period; public information; and assistance to non-governmental organizations so that they might participate in Committee sessions and to strengthen their ability to act at the national level. The Special Voluntary Fund had also financed the participation of 69 Member States and Palestine in the current Committee session.

Commenting on budgetary matters, the representative of Greece, speaking on behalf of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), suggested that it might be useful to provide delegates with a plan of the Convention secretariat's work in advance. He also asked if it was normal for one third of the regular budget to be devoted to consultants. The representative of Germany said a business plan stating activities foreseen for the next biennium would be helpful. He added that his country had contributed $2 million to the Trust Fund.

The representative of Canada commended the secretariat for good reporting and especially for the addendum which provided a list of contributions made after May. The representative of France also thanked the secretariat and expressed interest in a provisional budget and programme of work. The representative of the Netherlands associated his country with the statement by Greece and drew attention to the fact that his country's latest contribution to the Trust Fund was noted in the addendum.

The Committee agreed to formally accredit 31 non-governmental organizations, which are listed in document A/AC.241/9/Add.12. The representative of the United States said that, while she had no preliminary objections to the organizations on the list, she needed further time to consult with her Government. She might ask that the subject be revisited at the Committee's next plenary meeting.

The Committee elected the following officers: Anatoli M. Ovchinnikov (Uzbekistan), as Rapporteur, and Alok Jain (India) as Vice-Chairman. Samvel Baloyan (Armenia) was elected Vice-Chairman of Working Group II. Mr. Ovchinnikov (Uzbekistan) was to replace Nikita F. Glazovsky (Russian Federation) and Mr. Jain was to replace A.K. Ahuja (India).

Commenting on the question of the venue of the first Conference of Parties, the Chairman said a formal decision would be taken by the Committee to welcome the offer of Italy to host it.

The Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, 11 September, to discuss urgent action for Africa and interim actions in Asian, Latin American and the Caribbean, and the northern Mediterranean regions.

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