20 September 2011: The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the European Commission have released a newsletter on the Multilateral Environment Agreements in African, Caribbean and Pacific countries (ACP MEAs) Project. The newsletter features a guest article by Garfield Barnwell, CARICOM Secretariat, on policy responses for sustainable development in the Caribbean region.

The newsletter also contains information on recently completed activities in the African, Caribbean and Pacific project hubs. Activities implemented at the African Hub, housed at the African Union Commission (AUC), included a study reviewing the needs of contracting Parties to the Nairobi Convention, with regard to the ratification of the Protocol on Land Based Sources and Activities (LBSA). The study’s findings will allow the Nairobi Convention Secretariat to devise mechanisms to increase ratifications. In collaboration with the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and UNEP, the African Hub also facilitated training of African negotiators in Algiers, Algeria, from 10-11 September 2011.

At the Pacific Hub, housed at the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), activities included the midterm review of the hub itself. The project was found to be fulfilling its goal, with strong positive feedback from countries. Other key activities included the the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between SPREP and the Caribbean Community Centre for Climate Change (CCCCC), forming the basis for South-South cooperation.

Activities implemented at the Caribbean Hub, housed at the Secretariat of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), included preparation for the delivery of a judicial awareness training workshop to increase the capacity of judges handling MEA-related issues. [ACP MEAs Project website]