The city of Tangier is hosting, on 6 and 7 July, the joint meeting of the Bureaux of the 6th session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA6) and the permanent representatives of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP ).
Chaired by the Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development, Leila Benali, in her capacity as President of UNEA6, with the Jordanian Ambassador in Nairobi, Firas Khouri, President of the Bureau of the Permanent Representatives Committee (PRC) of UNEP , in the presence of the Executive Director of UNEP, Inger Anderson, this meeting is part of the implementation of the sheet of the Moroccan presidency of this Assembly.
This meeting, which was attended by Ministers in charge of the environment and Ambassadors who are members of the UNEA6 and CRP Bureaux, in particular from Senegal, Slovakia, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Iran, Pakistan, Barbados, Egypt and Ukraine, is an opportunity for members of these Bureaux to discuss a range of issues in preparation for UNEA6, to be held in February 2024 in Nairobi under the chairmanship of the Morocco.
It is also an opportunity to progress in the implementation of the roadmap of the Moroccan presidency of this Assembly by addressing key aspects, including in particular the agenda of UNEA6, the draft Ministerial Declaration, the process for submitting resolutions for adoption at the Assembly, as well as the communication strategy for UNEA6.
In a statement to the press, Leila Benali underlined that this meeting constitutes a very important station which will allow to finalize the draft of the ministerial declaration of the UNEA 6 and to continue the negotiations on the global environmental issues, noting that it is is a process that will culminate in UNEA6 to be held in February 2024 in Nairobi, under the chairmanship of Morocco.
“This meeting is an opportunity to begin to put in place the roadmap for our presidency of UNEA6, with a view to reaching a common position to present to the United Nations,” the Minister specified.
For her part, Inger Anderson thanked the Moroccan authorities, in particular the Ministry of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development, for organizing this meeting in Tangier, welcoming Morocco’s leadership in terms of environmental protection in regional and continental levels.
“The presidency of UNEA is a great responsibility entrusted to Morocco, which must federate the efforts of the 193 Member States of the United Nations, in order to establish the global environmental agenda and to identify the priorities and actions to be implemented”, said the UN official, saying that she was convinced that “the strong leadership of Morocco will lead to an ambitious and inclusive path capable of achieving the expected objectives”.
As President of UNEA, the Moroccan Minister also held an informal exchange of views on the sidelines of this meeting in the presence of members of the two Bureaux, with representatives of civil society, the main groups and stakeholders accredited to the UNEP and its governing bodies, to seek their input to UNEA6.
It should be noted that Morocco was elected as president of the 6th session of UNEA6 in March 2022, for a two-year term.
This appointment comes in consecration of the Kingdom’s commitment to environmental protection and sustainable development and its ambitious initiatives in this area driven by the guidelines of King Mohammed VI.
As part of the implementation of the roadmap of the Moroccan presidency of UNEA6, seven meetings of the Bureaux of UNEA and the CPR have already taken place in virtual sessions.
These meetings were an opportunity to agree on the theme of UNEA6, namely “Effective, inclusive and sustainable multilateral actions to combat climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution” and to begin the process consultations to develop the UNEA Ministerial Declaration6.
It should be recalled that UNEA, as a universal decision-making body on the environment, plays the role of a political platform bringing together the ministers in charge of the environment of the 193 Member States of the United Nations, as well as the observer States, United Nations system entities, intergovernmental organizations, major groups and stakeholders, which meets every two years to discuss policies aimed at setting the global environmental agenda, adopting strategic decisions, providing policy guidance and review UNEP’s program of work and budget.
Elected during each session, the UNEA Bureau is made up of 10 members (1 president, 8 vice-presidents and a rapporteur). The Bureau of this 6th Assembly is made up of Morocco as president, representatives of the United Kingdom, Senegal, Brazil, Colombia, Slovakia, Iran, Portugal and Pakistan as vice-presidents, as well as Ukraine as rapporteur. .