With one crucial item on the agenda, parties and stakeholders convened online for the Fourth Extraordinary Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (ExMOP-4). The COVID-19 pandemic delayed negotiations on the replenishment of the Multilateral Fund for Implementation of the Montreal Protocol for the period 2021-2023, but some donor countries are required by domestic financial regulations to make their payments for this year by the end of June 2021. At this one-day meeting, parties sought to take a decision that would facilitate these payments.
Parties based their discussions on a conference room paper submitted by Australia, the European Union, New Zealand, and Norway, which proposed that any contributions made in advance of the 2021-2023 replenishment decision should count toward future contributions, and that parties should await recommendations from the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel on the overall contributions that will be needed.
Many parties expressed support for the approach outlined in the conference room paper. Several underscored the importance of funding to support implementation of parties’ obligations under the Montreal Protocol and highlighted ongoing work in their countries toward phasing out hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), which are ozone-depleting substances, and phasing down hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), potent greenhouse gases that are often used as replacements for HCFCs.
Parties adopted the decision as set out in the conference room paper, and after just 90 minutes in session, MOP 32 President Paul Krajnik closed the meeting at 3:24 pm East Africa Time (GMT+3).
The 43rd session of the Open-ended Working Group will convene on 22 and 24 May 2021 to continue work related to replenishment of the Multilateral Fund.
The Earth Negotiations Bulletin will publish a summary and analysis of ExMOP-4 and OEWG 43 on Wednesday, 26 May 2021.
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Images from the Meeting
Hasan Mubarak, Bahrain
Annie Gabriel, Australia
Philippe Chemouny, Canada
Sanjay Kumar Bhomwmik, Bangladesh
Francisco Ferreira, Portugal
Steve Cowperthwaite, UK