The Rotterdam Convention Compliance Committee successfully concluded its inaugural meeting on 18 November 2022, following three days of intense deliberations.
Established in 2019 with the adoption of an additional Annex VII of the Rotterdam Convention, the Rotterdam Convention Compliance Committee (RCCC-1) addresses possible challenges faced by Parties in fulfilling their basic obligations and facilitates their compliance to the Convention. In its first meeting, the Committee considered its mandate, and reviewed systemic issues of general compliance, including notifications of final regulatory actions, and exports of chemicals listed in Annex III to the Convention. RCCC-1 also began working on collecting information from the Rotterdam Convention Parties with respect to submitting import responses.
“The concrete outcomes of the Committee’s first ever meeting are highly encouraging: Members hit the ground running from the start and are making every effort to ensure their work responds to Parties’ needs,” said the Executive Secretary of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions, Mr Rolph Payet.
The Rotterdam Convention Compliance Committee adopted a draft programme of work for 2024-2025, which will be considered in May 2023 by the 11th meeting of the governing body of the Convention, the Conference of the Parties.
“We hope that work initiated by the Compliance Committee will increase the awareness that complying with the Convention is to everybody’s benefit and will strongly contribute to the protection of human health and the environment,” stated Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Senior Technical Officer Christine Fuell, speaking on behalf of the Executive Secretary Mr. Rémi Nono Womdim.
RCCC-1 was held back-to-back with the 15th meeting of the Basel Convention Implementation and Compliance Committee. Apart from their individual sessions, the two Committees also held a joint session on issues of common interest. Following a rich discussion, Committee Members agreed on the modalities to enhance their cooperation.
According to RCCC-1 Chair Osvaldo Álvarez-Pérez (Chile), “The first meeting of the Rotterdam Convention Compliance Committee was a resounding success!” Mr Álvarez-Pérez went on to add that “Beginning the work of the Committee is an exciting time to forge a new path, building on what we’ve learned from the past.”
The Rotterdam Convention Compliance Committee benefits from generous financial support provided by Germany and Switzerland.
The Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for certain hazardous chemicals and pesticides in international trade is jointly administered by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The 165 Parties to this legally binding Convention share responsibility and cooperate to safely manage chemicals in international trade. To date, 54 hazardous chemicals and pesticides are listed in its Annex III, making their international trade subject to a prior informed consent (PIC) procedure.
The Rotterdam Convention Compliance Committee deals with specific submissions relating to the compliance of an individual Party and reviews systemic issues of general compliance.
The Secretariat of the Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm Conventions (BRS Secretariat) brings together three leading multilateral environment agreements that share the common objective of protecting human health and the environment from hazardous chemicals and waste.
