The Environmental Management Group (EMG) met for its seventh meeting on 20 April 2004 in New York to consider its Programme of Work for 2004 concerning environmental capacity building, and sustainable production and consumption/sustainable procurement.

On environmental capacity building, participants heard a presentation on the background and process for the Intergovernmental Strategic Plan for Technology Support and Capacity-building (ISP) and its linkages with the work of the EMG. The need for an ISP was identified at the 2002 Seventh Special Session of the UNEP Governing Council/GMEF and elaborated in subsequent UNEPGC sessions. The Intergovernmental Working Group for the ISP is scheduled to meeting three times in 2004, with the first meeting held in New York on 25 June prior to the ECOSOC session, the second in early September in Nairobi, and the third in early December in Indonesia. Participants also heard presentations on and discussed the outlines for the EMG’s study on capacity building in the areas of biodiversity and chemicals management.
On sustainable production and consumption/ sustainable procurement, it was proposed that the EMG Secretariat would collect information on and report to the next meeting the current situation in terms of procurement regulations and operations and environmental management programmes for UN compounds and offices. The EMG would then examine how best it can contribute to advancing sustainable procurement practices and environmental management of UN compounds and offices. It was also proposed that the World Bank would lead the further work on this issue. More information on this meeting is available at: http://www.unemg.org/download_pdf/report7.pdf