UNECE Environment Ministers to Revitalize Rio
Spirit
Geneva, 20 September 2001
On 24 and 25 September, Environment Ministers of the member
States of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) will meet
in Geneva to prepare their contribution to next year’s World Summit on
Sustainable Development. They will assess the progress made since Rio and set
the priorities for the next decade. The Regional Ministerial Meeting is one of
five regional meetings taking place throughout the world at the request of the
United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development.
During the Regional Ministerial Meeting, the Ministers will
propose priorities for action at both regional and global levels in their
Ministerial Statement. They will also convene two panels: one on governance
and sustainable development, the other on poverty. Some 500 participants
from governments, NGOs and intergovernmental organizations are expected to
take part in the Regional Ministerial Meeting.
In addition to the Regional Ministerial Meeting, the
secretariats of UNECE and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) have
prepared a regional assessment of progress in sustainable development since
1992. The assessment shows that over the past 10 years, the UNECE region
has made progress in economic development and environmental sustainability.
Yet problems persist, in particular underdevelopment, poverty, ill health and
weak governance in many countries in transition together with high
unemployment, social exclusion, growing waste volumes and the build-up of
chemicals in the environment throughout the region. Production and consumption
patterns are still a far cry from their sustainable ideal.
This is why the spirit of the Rio Conference needs to be
revitalized and all countries of the UNECE region and beyond should strengthen
their commitment to achieving sustainable development.
All the documentation for the Regional Ministerial Meeting,
including the regional assessment, is available on the UNECE web site:
http://www.unece.org/env/rio%2b10/
The World Summit on Sustainable Development will take place
in Johannesburg, South Africa, on 2-11 September 2002.
For more information, please contact:
Kaj Bärlund
Director
UNECE Environment and Human Settlements Division
Palais des Nations, office 336
CH - 1211 Geneva 10
Phone: +41 22 917 23 70
Fax: +41 22 907 01 07
E-mail: [email protected]
or:
Mary Pat Silveira
UNECE Environment and Human Settlements Division
Palais des Nations, office 338
CH - 1211 Geneva 10
Phone: +41 22 917 13 15
Fax: +41 22 907 06 30
E-mail: [email protected]
Ref: ECE/ENV/01/09