ENB:08:19
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THINGS TO LOOK FOR TODAY
PLENARY: The Conference will begin its general debate in Plenary at 10:00 am in Conference Room 1. The tentative speakers' list for the day begins with Algeria, on behalf of the Group of 77, and Greece, on behalf of the European Union. The subsequent speakers may include Antigua and Barbuda, China, Malaysia, Australia, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Bahamas, Grenada, Japan and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Possible speakers in the afternoon include: the Caribbean Community (Caricom), Iceland, Marshall Islands, Venezuela, Trinidad and Tobago, Mauritania, the Republic of Korea, the Philippines, the United Nations Development Programme for Women (UNIFEM) and one NGO representative. The speakers' list for the general debate will be closed at 6:00 pm on Wednesday, 27 April.
MAIN COMMITTEE: The Chair of the Main Committee, Amb. Penelope Wensley, will open the meeting this morning in Conference Room 2 by introducing the work that remains to be done. There is concern that the Main Committee now has only one week in which to complete its work as negotiations must end by Tuesday, 3 May, since AOSIS intends to hold a Heads of State Summit on Wednesday, 4 May, preceding the High-Level Segment of the Conference, which will take place on 5-6 May.
Wensley is expected to start with a reading of Chapters I-XIV, allowing AOSIS maximum time to consult on its expected amendments to the Preamble and Chapter XV. It is not yet clear how the NGO comments, incorporated by AOSIS into a composite paper, will be brought into the discussions.
IN THE CORRIDORS: During the intersessional period, Trinidad and Tobago, Chair of AOSIS, held informal meetings with other delegations in New York, including those of developed countries, on the institutional arrangements section of Chapter XV and the Preamble. Look for these texts to be offered during the course of negotiations in the Main Committee. Furthermore, AOSIS has prepared a composite text, including NGO comments, to the final document, which may also be introduced during the negotiations.
NGO ISLANDS FORUM '94: The site of all NGO activities is located at the Barbados Community College, a short walk from the Sherbourne Center. Activities include a daily NGO briefing from 8:30 - 9:30 am and a series of workshops and other events organized by women, youth, indigenous people and NGOs.