The 17th meeting of the Plants Committee of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) was held in Geneva, Switzerland from 15-19 April 2008.

It was immediately followed by the 23rd meeting of the Animals Committee, which met from 19-23 April. On 19 April, the two Committees held a joint meeting. The Plants Committee adopted recommendations on several issues. Among the meeting’s highlights was the decision to include bigleaf mahogany in the Review of Significant Trade (RST), recommending that the review be limited to parties with implementation problems.
On 19 April, the joint session of the Plants and Animals Committees addressed issues of common interest, including: the revision of the Terms of Reference of the Committees; cooperation with advisory bodies of other biodiversity-related multilateral agreements; review of significant trade in specimens of Appendix II species; international expert workshop on non-detriment findings (NDFs); and transport of live animals and plants.
The Animals Committee addressed, among other issues, the sustainability of international trade in sharks and sturgeons. The Committee examined reports on efforts to improve monitoring of the catch of and trade in sharks and to implement the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) International Plan of Action-Sharks. It also examined key shark species for possible listing under CITES. Concerning sturgeons, the Committee began an evaluation of the assessment and the monitoring methodologies used for stocks shared by several countries, such as those of the Caspian Sea.
Link to further information
IISD RS coverage of the meetings