Regional Centres aim to score a goal against chemical contamination

At annual joint meeting Regional Centres of the Basel and Stockholm conventions exchange plans for evaluating performance and sustainability

The annual joint meeting to enhance cooperation and coordination between the regional centres under the Basel and Stockholm conventions took place in Geneva from 27 to 29 November 2013. The meeting was attended by 22 out of 23 Basel and Stockholm conventions regional centres.  

Jim Willis, Executive Secretary of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions, opened the meeting by inviting the centres to become more involved not only with the implementation of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm conventions but also with the implementation of the international chemicals agenda and the Minamata Convention when expertise and support can be provided also to these international chemicals and wastes processes.  

The meeting focused its discussion primarily on issues relating to the performance and sustainability of the regional centres under the Basel and Stockholm conventions. The methodology for evaluating the performance and sustainability of the regional and subregional centres and the draft evaluation of all the centres based on the methodology were discussed extensively and recommendations were made on how to collect relevant information in order to undertake such an evaluation objectively.

The Secretariat shared with the Regional Centres drafts of a revised template for activity reporting and for preparing business plan/workplans by the Regional Centres. It also shared a questionnaire to collect feedbacks from the parties on the performance of the Regional Centres.

The Regional Centres worked in groups and shared their successes and challenges, institutional dreams and inspiration from the peers within their groups and later with everyone in an effort to strengthen the Regional Centres by enhancing cooperation and collaboration among themselves.  

Regional Centres from the GRULAC region discussed “Scoring a Goal Against Chemical Contamination”, a special awareness raising initiative on chemicals and waste. The initiative aims at raising awareness on the importance of the chemicals and waste agenda in Latin America and the Caribbean by capturing the opportunity of the FIFA World Football Cup scheduled to be held in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and other Brazilian cities in June and July 2014.