European Union

On Thursday, participants reconvened in Geneva for the fourth day of the 69th meeting of the CITES Standing Committee (CITES SC69). When not meeting in in-session working groups, parties worked in plenary to tackle outstanding agenda items, including: cooperation with other biodiversity related conventions; review of the resolution on consideration of proposals for the transfer of the African elephant from Appendix I to Appendix II; and cooperation under the 2006 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between CITES and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), with special reference to the scientific and technical evaluation of listing proposals for commercially exploited aquatic species. In deliberations on marine species listings, Secretary-General Scanlon outlined cooperative work between the FAO and the Secretariat, as well as close work with Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs), highlighting the “collegiality” as well as “breadth and depth” of the FAO-CITES relationship. During the day, the SC addressed the difficulties the Secretariat has faced in determining which of multiple authorities claiming to be Management Authorities in a party is authorized to communicate with other parties and with the Secretariat and represent a party at CITES meetings. On the implementation of the Convention, participants underscored that adequate national legislation is critical for regulating legal trade and combating illegal trade. SC69 also considered, among other issues, illegal trade in eels, rosewood timber species, and tortoises and freshwater turtles. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage, and a summary and analysis report from the 69th Meeting of the CITES Standing Committee. The summary and analysis is available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. Morning Plenary View of the dais during morning plenary Carolina Caceres, Standing Committee (SC) Chair, Canada  John Scanlon, Secretary-General, CITES Kumara Wakjira, Ethiopia Craig Hoover, US Hirohide Matsushima, Japan Vanesa Tossenberger, Argentina Solomon Kyalo, Kenya Hélène Perier, EU Firdaus Agung, Indonesia Abednico Leano Macheme, Botswana Jaques Berney, IWMC World Conservation Trust Augustin Ngumbi Amuri, Democratic Republic of the Congo Kim Friedman, Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) Dan Challender, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Afternoon Plenary View of the dais during afternoon plenary Levente Kőrösi, Hungary Haruko Okusu, CITES Secretariat Charles Tumwesigye, Uganda Andrea Gruber, International Air Transport Association (IATA) Chizamsoka Manda, Malawi María Elena Sánchez Saldaña, Species Survival Network (SSN) Blamah Sando Goll, Liberia Rob Parry-Jones, WWF International Nunes Tómas Mazivile, Mozambique Jintana Nugranad, Thailand Bill Clark, Israel Maurice Isaacs, the Bahamas Fernando Escobar Pacheco, Bolivia Sara Yalle Paredes, Peru Soumitra Dasgupta and Debabrata Swain, India, receive an award for “Operation Save Kurma,” one of the largest seizures of live tortoises and turtles in South Asia to date Delegates applaud India for their achievements Around the Venue Delegates from China Delegates from Chad Delegates from Saudi Arabia Delegates read the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) website Francisco Rilla, UN Environment Programme (UNEP), speaks with Øystein Størkersen, Norway Adrianne Sinclair, Canada, Chair of Plants Committee, consults with Mathias Lörtscher, Switzerland, Chair of the Animals Committee Susan Lieberman, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), and Glenn Sant, TRAFFIC Tom De Meulenaer, CITES Secretariat, speaks with Ali Laouel Abbagana, Niger A delegate from Spain reads the CITES guide for law enforcement agencies to combat illegal trade of Asian big cats Delegates between sessions Snowfall outside the venue

The fifty-third session of the International Tropical Timber Council (ITTC-53) continued its deliberations in Lima, Peru, on 30 November 2017. In the morning, the Committee on Reforestation and Forest Management (CRF) met in parallel with the Committee on Economics, Statistics and Markets and the Committee on Forest Industry (CEM-CFI). The CRF reviewed projects and pre-projects under implementation or awaiting financing. CEM-CFI continued discussion on market-associated activities in the proposed Biennial Work Programme (BWP) for 2018-2019 and heard a presentation by Independent Market Monitoring (IMM) on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) certified timber trade data and statistics in the EU with Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) countries. The CEM and CFI then discussed new, ongoing and completed projects and pre-projects and considered recommendations for the Committees to make to Council. During the lunch period the contact group met to discuss the issue of rotation in the selection of the ITTO Executive Director. A side event organized by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) was held on "national fiscal incentives and public procurement policies to promote sustainable forest management in tropical forests." In the afternoon the Committee on Finance and Administration (CFA) met to continue discussions on increasing transparency of ITTO documentation and increasing the Special Reserve Fund, as well as a draft decision regarding the request from the Central African Republic for relief of obligations. After the CFA session, the Panel on Sub-Account B of the Bali Partnership Fund met, followed by the Chairman's Open-Ended Drafting Group. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage and a summary and analysis report from the 53rd Session of the International Tropical Timber Council and Associated Sessions of the Committees. The summary and analysis is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Ángeles Estrada For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page.   Committee on Reforestation and Forest Management (CRF) Marjukka Mähönen, CRF Chair Jean-Baptiste Constant Yapo, Côte d’Ivoire Hwan Ok-Ma, ITTO Secretariat; Marjukka Mähönen, CRF Chair; Dambis Kaip (Papua New Guinea), CRF Vice-Chair; and Polycarpe Masupa Kambale, ITTO Secretariat Edgar Selvin Pérez, HELVETAS Swiss Intercooperation, Guatemala Mohammed Nurudeen Iddrisu, Ghana   Hwan Ok-Ma, ITTO Secretariat Polycarpe Masupa Kambale, ITTO Secretariat Deniz Randolfo García Juárez, Guatemala, and John Hontelez, FSC International David Samuel Estacuy Cojulúm, Guatemala Committee on Economics, Statistics and Markets and the Committee on Forest Industry (CEM-CFI) Tetra Yanuariadi, ITTO Secretariat; Achille Orphée Lokossou (Benin), CFI Chair; Jorge Malleux Orjeda (Peru), CEM Chair; Björn Merkell (Sweden), CEM Vice-Chair; and Steven Johnson, ITTO Secretariat   Jennifer Conje, US Sarah Storck, Independent Market Monitoring (IMM) Rupert Oliver, IMM Steven Johnson, ITTO Secretariat Committee on Finance and Administration (CFA) Luke Thompson (US), CFA Vice-Chair; Mad Zaidi Mohamed Karli (Malaysia), CFA Chair; and Simon Kawaguchi, ITTO Secretariat Nguyễn Phú Hưng, Viet Nam, consults with Solizama Ouro-Bang’na and Komla Detse, Togo. Luke Thompson (US), CFA Vice-Chair Vivita Rozenbergs, US Hiroyuki Nishiura and Yoshiko Motoyama, Japan Side Event: "National Fiscal Incentives and Public Procurement Policies to Promote Sustainable Forest Management in Tropical Forests," organized by FSC Andrea del Pozo, Maderacre, and Pina Gervassi, FSC Latin America John Hontelez, FSC International Jorge Mario Rodríguez-Zúñiga, Costa Rica   Around the Venue      

On the second day of OECPR-3, delegates convened in contact groups throughout the day and in the evening. Contact groups discussed three draft decisions on procedural matters, and made progress on a number of substantive resolutions. In the evening, consultations on the ministerial outcome document of the third UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-3) took place. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage, daily reports, and a summary and analysis report from OECPR-3 and UNEA-3. The summary and analysis is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Mike Muzarakis For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. Contact Group 1 Suseno Sukoyono, Indonesia Andrew McNee, Australia Committee of Permanent Representatives Vice-Chair Raza Bashir Tarar, Pakistan Elizabeth McLanahan, US Rubén Muñoz Robles, Costa Rica Mai Britt Knoph, Norway Webster Chiyangwa, Zimbabwe Clara Cerqueira, Brazil Matthias Maier, EU Miak Aw Hui Min, Singapore Deepa Liyanage, Sri Lanka Abdulqader Alkharraz, Yemen From L-R: Mai Britt Knoph, Norway; Nathan Glassey, New Zealand; and Mona Aarhus, Norway Contact Group on Overall Coordination John Matuszak, US OECPR Chair John Moreti, Botswana Eduardo Alcibíades Sánchez Kiesslich, Mexico Martin Gomez Bustillo, Argentina Jorge Laguna-Celis, Secretary, Secretariat of Governing Bodies, UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Maarten Kappelle, UNEP Pierre Boileau, UNEP Lars Mortensen, EU Contact Group 3 Solveig Crompton, Norway Contact Group 3 Chair Tarja Fernández, Finland Pedro Escosteguy Cardoso, Brazil Zaid Noori, Iraq Jennifer Kerr, Canada Ndoboli Nathan, Uganda Contact Group 4 View of the dais during the contact group discussions Wilson Sumner, US Koketso Chibana, Botswana Delegates from the EU Around the venue

On Wednesday, the Standing Committee (SC) resumed its discussions in plenary. In-session working groups continued to meet on the margins of the meeting, including in the evening. In the morning, the SC deliberated on matters of food security, livelihoods, engagement of rural communities in CITES and terminology related to local, indigenous and rural communities. Interventions from participants included pleas to consider the effects of CITES decisions on local people. Intersessional working groups were formed on livelihoods and on rural communities, with the chair of the latter tasked with identifying relevant rural community representatives in consultation with parties. The SC also considered reports on the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), UN World Wildlife Day, combating wildlife cybercrime, disposal of confiscated specimens and specimens produced from synthetic or cultured DNA. In the afternoon, the SC returned to the issue of livelihoods and food security, agreeing to a revised mandate for an intersessional working group. Discussions proceeded quickly on purpose codes on CITES permits and certificates, definition of the term “appropriate and acceptable destinations,” electronic systems and information technologies and traceability, as well as cheetahs. Delegates also discussed issues related to sturgeons and paddlefish, sharks and rays, the African lion and CITES Appendix III. Several intersessional working groups were formed. At an event held alongside CITES SC69, the International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC) announced new funding to step up the fight against illegal wildlife trade. The new funding will come from the EU (EUR 13,500,000), Germany (EUR 400,000) and the UK (GBP 4,000,000), which in addition to the support provided by France and the Principality of Monaco (EUR 85,000 and EUR 200,000), totals USD 20 million for the implementation of the ICCWC Strategic Programme 2016-2020. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage, and a summary and analysis report from the 69th Meeting of the CITES Standing Committee. The summary and analysis is available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. Morning Plenary View of plenary during the morning session Carolina Caceres, Standing Committee (SC) Chair, Canada Sarah Bagnall, New Zealand João Loureiro, Portugal Sara Yalle Paredes, Peru Basile van Havre, Canada Ron Thomson, The True Green Alliance Sabri Zain, TRAFFIC Maurice Isaacs, the Bahamas Daven Joseph, Antigua and Barbuda Kristina Rodina, Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO) Nero Cunha Ferreira, Brazil  Kumara Wakjira, Ethiopia Felix Monggae, Botswana Thierry Lucas, UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Olga Kumalo, South Africa Max Abensperg-Traun, Austria Afternoon Plenary Delegates during the afternoon plenary Elly Hamunyela, Namibia Karen Gaynor, CITES Secretariat Ali Laouel Abbagana, Niger Mathias Lörtscher, Switzerland, Chair of the Animals Committee (AC) Abba Sonko, Senegal Benoit Doamba, Burkina Faso Iris Ho, Humane Society International Observer delegates raise their placards to be included in a working group Armen Petrossian, International Caviar Importers Association Tan York Chor, Singapore Clara Nobbe, Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) Paul De Ornellas, Zoological Society of London (ZSL) Elizabeth Ferguson, Australia Antonio Palma Inostroza, Chile Daniel Fernando, Sri Lanka Around the Venue Delegates from Kenya Delegates from Mexico and the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) Delegates from Peru Delegates from Chile Delegates from Italy Delegates speak informally A delegate reads the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) website Delegates review a document Bee hives at the venue

The fifty-third session of the International Tropical Timber Council (ITTC-53) continued its deliberations in Lima, Peru on 29 November 2017. In the morning, delegates met in the Council to discuss the issue of rotation in the selection of the Executive Director. A small contact group was created to discuss proposals in greater detail that will report back to plenary on Friday. In the afternoon, delegates convened a Joint Committee Session to examine the Report of the Expert Panel for Technical Appraisal of Project Proposals, followed by the Annual Market Discussion for 2017 under the theme "Sharing Experiences on Promoting Investment in Tropical Timber Industries and Tropical Forestry." After the Joint Committee Session, the Committee on Finance and Administration (CFA) met in parallel with the Committee on Economics, Statistics and Markets and the Committee on Forest Industry (CEM-CFI). CFA discussed the appointment of the auditor, the request from Central African Republic for relief of obligation, increasing transparency of ITTO documentation and increasing the Special Reserve Fund. CEM-CFI continued discussions on policy work and began consideration of the draft 2018-2019 Biennial Work Programme (BWP) for the committee. The Committee on Reforestation and Forest Management (CRF) met afterward, discussing a completed project and the 2018-2019 BWP for the committee. In the evening, delegates attended a reception co-hosted by ITTC-53 Chair Tabi Agyarko and ITTO Executive Director Gerhard Dieterle. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage and a summary and analysis report from the 53rd Session of the International Tropical Timber Council and Associated Sessions of the Committees. The summary and analysis is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Ángeles Estrada For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. Council Session Gerhard Dieterle, ITTO Executive Director; Tabi Agyarko (Ghana), Chair of ITTC-53; and Zhang Zhongtian (China), Vice-Chair of ITTC-53 Victoire Eheth, Cameroon, speaking for Producers Hiroyuki Nishiura, Japan Jorge Malleux Orjeda, Peru   Producer members consulting Luo Xinjiang, China Anna Tyler, New Zealand, speaking for Consumers Participants during the Council session Gerhard Breulmann, ITTO Secretariat Sheamala Satkuru, ITTO Secretariat María Fernanda Potes Pair and Rubén Darío Guerrero, Colombia Gerhard Dieterle, ITTO Executive Director Dambis Kaip, Papua New Guinea   Zurinah Pawanteh, Malaysia   Joint Committee Session The panel for the Annual Market Discussion: Ingrid Nielsen, Indufor Group, Finland; Christian Held, Forest Investment Division UNIQUE Consulting, Germany; Bob Tate, Papua New Guinea Forest Industries Association (PNGFIA); André de Boer, Trade Advisory Group (TAG) Co-Coordinator; Rik Sools, FORM International, the Netherlands, Ivan Tomaselli; STCP Consulting and Engineering, Brazil; and Erik Fisher, Association of Exporters, Peru Ingrid Nielsen, Indufor Group, Finland Erik Fisher, Association of Exporters, Peru Jobst-Michael Schroeder, Germany, presented the report of the 52nd Expert Panel for Technical Appraisal of Project Proposals André de Boer, Trade Advisory Group (TAG) Co-Coordinator Ivan Tomaselli, STCP Consulting and Engineering, Brazil Bob Tate, Papua New Guinea Forest Industries Association (PNGFIA) Christian Held, UNIQUE Consulting, Germany Rik Sools, FORM International, the Netherlands   Committee on Economics, Statistics and Markets and the Committee on Forest Industry (CEM-CFI) Tetra Yanuariadi, ITTO Secretariat; Achille Orphée Lokossou (Benin), CFI Chair; Jorge Malleux Orjeda (Peru), CEM Chair; Björn Merkell (Sweden), CEM Vice-Chair; and Steven Johnson, ITTO Secretariat Jorge Malleux Orjeda (Peru), CEM Chair; and Björn Merkell (Sweden), CEM Vice-Chair Felix Magallon González, Panama Alonso Rizo-Patron Mailhe, Peru Desy Ekawati, Indonesia Committee on Finance and Administration (CFA) Luke Thompson (US), CFA Vice-Chair; Mad Zaidi Mohamed Karli (Malaysia), CFA Chair; Simon Kawaguchi, ITTO Secretariat; Sheamala Satkuru, ITTO Secretariat; Gerhard Breulmann, ITTO Secretariat; and Maiko Suzuki, ITTO Secretariat Luke Thompson (US), CFA Vice-Chair Participants during CFA Rob Busink, EU Mad Zaidi Mohamed Karli (Malaysia), CFA Chair   Committee on Reforestation and Forest Management (CRF) Hwan Ok-Ma, ITTO Secretariat; Marjukka Mähönen, CRF Chair; Dambis Kaip (Papua New Guinea), CRF Vice-Chair; and Polycarpe Masupa Kambale, ITTO Secretariat Shigeki Hata, Japan Participants during CRF Deniz Randolfo García Juárez, Guatemala Aysha Ghadiali, US Around the Venue        

The third meeting of the Open-Ended Committee of Permanent Representatives (OECPR-3) opened in Nairobi on Wednesday morning. Following welcome statements by OECPR Chair John Moreti (Botswana) and UN Environment Programme Executive Director Erik Solheim, representatives of regional groups and Member States made opening statements. Delegates then adopted the organization of work and established five contact groups to finalize draft decisions and resolutions that will be forwarded to the third UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-3). In the afternoon, UNEA-3 President Edgar Gutiérrez Espeleta briefed delegates on the status of consultations on the ministerial outcome document. Contact group discussion of draft resolutions as well as the UNEA-3 ministerial outcome document continued into the evening. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, will provide daily web coverage, daily reports, and a summary and analysis report from OECPR-3 and UNEA-3. Kindly return to this website on Wednesday, 29 November 2017, for more information. Photos by IISD/ENB | Mike Muzarakis For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. From L-R: OECPR Chair John Moreti, Botswana; Jorge Laguna-Celis, Secretary, Secretariat of Governing Bodies, UN Environment Programme; and UNEA President Edgar Gutiérrez-Espeleta, Minister of Environment and Energy, Costa Rica Erik Solheim, Executive Director, UN Environment Programme Committee of Permanent Representatives (CPR) Vice-Chair Elizabeth Taylor, Colombia Ibrahim Thiaw, Deputy Executive Director, UN Environment Programme OECPR Chair John Moreti, Botswana UNEA President Edgar Gutiérrez-Espeleta, Minister of Environment and Energy, Costa Rica Sebastian Gil, EU CPR Vice-Chair Raza Bashir Tarar, Pakistan Agrina Mussa, Malawi Martin Gomez Bustillo, Argentina Erasmo Martínez, Mexico Jillian Dempster, New Zealand Jorge Laguna-Celis, Secretary, Secretariat of Governing Bodies, UN Environment Programme Delegates from the EU confer Contact Group 3 Wilson Sumner, US Contact Group 3 Chair Tarja Fernández, Finland Zaid Noori, Iraq Maria Lemos, Colombia Yevhenii Tsymbaliuk, Ukraine Eduardo Alcibíades Sánchez Kiesslich, Mexico Contact Group 2 Majella Pua-Diezmos, the Philippines Contact Group 2 Chair Elizabeth Taylor, Colombia Pedro Tiê Candido Souza, Brazil Hussein Roshdy, Egypt Sverre Thomas Jahre, Norway Simon Cardy, South Africa Ndoboli Nathan, Uganda Belsis Llorente Díaz, Cuba Ruth Kitonyi, Kenya Participants in discussions Around the venue Stakeholders with UNEA President Edgar Gutiérrez-Espeleta, Minister of Environment and Energy, Costa Rica and Marta Juarez Ruiz, Ambassador on Special Mission to UN Environment Programme, Costa Rica (center)

On Tuesday morning, the 69th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES SC69) reconvened to address outstanding agenda items from the day before. While Standing Committee (SC) Chair Carolina Caceres urged participants to make their interventions brief in an attempt to expedite discussions, several issues prompted extensive debate. In the morning, the SC addressed timber issues, with the CITES Secretariat proposing to maintain the recommendation for parties not to accept exports or re-exports for commercial purposes from Madagascar of specimens of Diospyros spp. and Dalbergia spp. A number of issues on elephants were discussed, ranging from commending the efforts made or underway by some parties to close their domestic ivory markets, and addressing progress on National Ivory Action Plans (NIAPs), including concerns related to the Elephant Trade Information System (ETIS) methodology. In-session working groups were set up to address timber and elephant issues. In the afternoon, the SC considered humphead wrasse, pangolins, illegal trade in Tibetan antelope, rhinoceroses and interpretation of annotation #15. The SC struck in-session working groups on humphead wrasse, pangolins and Tibetan antelope, among others. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage, and a summary and analysis report from the 69th Meeting of the CITES Standing Committee. The summary and analysis is available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. Morning Plenary View of the dais during the morning plenary Bénédicte Johanita Ndahimananjara, Minister of Environment, Ecology and Forests, Madagascar Carolina Caceres, Standing Committee (SC) Chair, Canada Jorge Rodríguez Romero, EU Anne St. John, US Charles Tumwesigye, Uganda Ha Thi Mai Trang, Viet Nam Malachie Ndikimbaye Dolmia, Chad Susanne Breitkopf, Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) An observer organisation raises her placard to be included in a working group Elly Hamunyela, Namibia Pinsak Suraswadi, Thailand He Jingxin, China Anton Mezhnev, Russian Federation Obaid Ali Al Shamsi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) John Stephenson, Stop Ivory Susan Lieberman, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) Afternoon Plenary Delegates during the afternoon plenary Dan Challender, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Augustin Ngumbi Amuri, Democratic Republic of the Congo Liv-Stephanie Bantle, Norway Narcisse Lambert Mbarga, Cameroon Aurélie Flore Koumba Pambo, Gabon Willem Wijnstekers, International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation (CIC) Soumitra Dasgupta, India Lois Lelanchon, International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) F.U. Mangwanya, Zimbabwe Adrianne Sinclair, Chair, CITES Plants Committee Marco Pani, Conservation Force Around the Venue Delegates speak informally while plenary proceeds Delegates before the start of plenary David Morgan, CITES Secretariat; Carolina Caceres, SC Chair, Canada; and John Scanlon, Secretary-General, CITES, scan the plenary for speakers Delegates from Liberia A delegate reads the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) website to keep track of negotiations Delegates between sessions