The 58th Session of the Standing Committee (SC58) of the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) continued deliberations today in Geneva, Switzerland.
The SC met in plenary throughout the day, addressing cooperation with the World Trade Organization, national wildlife trade policy reviews, the review of Resolutions, national reports, the Review of Significant Trade, e-commerce of specimens of CITES listed species, the outcome of the international expert workshop on non-detriment findings (NDF), and the criteria for the amendment of Appendices I and II.
Whereas some issues such as the recommendations from experts for making NDFs for different groups of species were welcomed and supported by a majority, others, such as the re-opening of the RST for some species found general opposition.
Discussions on the criteria for the amendment of Appendices turned into a lively debate regarding the Secretariat's and the FAO's diverging interpretations of the terms used in Res. Conf. 9.24 (Criteria for amendment of Appendices I and II). Although some parties called on making the most out of the expertise available in this meeting and proposing a way forward on this issue, the SC decided to refer this debate to CoP15.