ENB:08:10
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REGIONAL TECHNICAL MEETINGS
As part of the preparatory process, two regional technical meetings were held. The first meeting for the Indian and Pacific Oceans was coordinated by the South Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) and was held from 31 May - 4 June 1993 in Vanuatu. The report of this meeting is contained in document A/CONF.167/PC/7. The second regional technical meeting for the Atlantic/ Caribbean/Mediterranean region was held in Trinidad and Tobago from 28 June - 2 July 1993. The meeting was coordinated by the Caribbean Community (Caricom) with the assistance of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). The report of this meeting is contained in document A/CONF/167/PC/8.
The meetings recommended that the PrepCom consider the following priority areas as the basis for developing an action programme for small island developing States (SIDS): climate change and sea-level rise; natural and environmental disaster preparedness; environmentally sound management of wastes and toxic substances; coastal and marine resources; freshwater resources; land resources; management of energy resources; management of tourism development; conservation of biological diversity; national institutions and administrative capacity; regional institutions and technical cooperation; transport and communication; management of science and technology; human resources (population, education, urban development and health); and environmental legislation.
The regional technical meetings also endorsed and recommended to the PrepCom guidelines for implementation, monitoring and review of the action programme for SIDS. The recommendations include action to be taken at the national, regional, subregional and international levels. They also encouraged the participation of NGOs and other major groups in policy formulation and called for further work on developing a vulnerability index that would better reflect the particular situation of SIDS.