African Group

The Fiji / Bonn Climate Change Conference opened in Bonn, Germany. In the morning, Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, Fiji, was elected COP 23 President by acclamation. He then presided over a traditional Fijian ceremony, the Qaloqalovi, which included the presentation of a Tabua, the tooth of a sperm whale. During the opening ceremony, UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa called on parties to act with urgency, saying “right here, right now is where we begin.” The opening plenaries of the Conference of the Parties (COP), Conference of the Parties Serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP) and Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA) met during the morning and early afternoon. In the afternoon, the opening plenaries of the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) and Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) met in parallel and, later, in a joint plenary. Ad Hoc Working Group on the Paris Agreement (APA) roundtables met on compliance and on further guidance relating to the mitigation section of Decision 1/CP.21 (the Paris outcome) in the afternoon. SBSTA and SBI contact groups and informal consultations also met in the afternoon. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has providing daily web coverage, daily reports, and a summary and analysis report from the Fiji / Bonn Climate Change Conference 2017. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. Opening Ceremony Delegates gather for the opening of COP 23/CMP/CMA Salaheddine Mezouar, COP 22/CMP 12 President Salaheddine Mezouar, COP 22/CMP 12/CMA 1 President, hands the gavel to Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, Fiji, and COP 23/CMP 13/CMA 1-2 President Delegates are welcomed to the meeting with a musical performace Frank Bainimarama, COP 23/CMP 13/CMA 1-2 President Petteri Taalas, Secretary-General, World Meteorological Organization (WMO) UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa Hoesung Lee, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Chair Barbara Hendricks, Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety, Germany Ashok-Alexander Sridharan, Mayor of Bonn, Germany Jan Szysko, Minister of Environment, Poland, and incoming COP 24/CMP 14/CMA 1-3 President; Frank Bainimarama  COP 23/CMP 13/CMA 1-2 President; and Salaheddine Mezouar, COP 22/CMP 12/CMA 1 President Representatives from Fiji perform a traditional ceremony, known as the Qaloqalovi, to open the meeting Barbara Hendricks, Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety, Germany, and Sai Navoti, Fiji, drink kava - a traditional Fijian drink used in welcoming ceremonies COP, CMP and CMA Opening Plenaries View of the dais during the opening plenaries Ravi Prasad, India Frank Bainimarama, COP 23/CMP 13/CMA 1-2 President Majid Shafie-Pour, Iran, speaking on behalf of Like-minded Developing Countries (LMDCs) Franz Perrez, Switzerland, speaking on behalf of the Environmental Integrity Group (EIG) Chen Zhihua, China Walter Schuldt Espinel, Ecuador, speaking on behalf of the G-77/China Ian Fry, Tuvalu Meelis Münt, EU Halldor Thorgeirsson, UNFCCC Secretariat Marcela Main Sancha, Secretary to the COP/CMP, UNFCCC Patrick Suckling, Australia, on behalf of the Umbrella Group Gemedo Dalle, Ethiopia, speaking on behalf of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) Abdullahi Majeed, Maldives, speaking on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) Delegates during plenary SBSTA Opening Plenary View of the dais during the SBSTA opening plenary SBSTA Chair Carlos Fuller, Belize Elena Manaenkova, WMO Thinley Namgyel, Vice Chair of the Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN) Advisory Board Michael Rantil, Technology Executive Committee (TEC) Chair Abdalah Mokssit, IPCC SBI Opening Plenary View of the dais during the SBI opening plenary SBI Chair Tomasz Chruszczow, Poland Ovais Sarmad, UNFCCC Deputy Executive Secretary Felipe Ferreira, Brazil Philip Weech, the Bahamas Chizuru Aoki, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) SBI/SBSTA Joint Plenary View of the dais during the SBI/SBSTA joint plenary SBI Chair Tomasz Chruszczow, Poland, and SBSTA Chair Carlos Fuller, Belize Hussein Alfa Nafo, Mali, speaking on behalf of the African Group Jean Diur Muland, Democratic Republic of the Congo, speaking on behalf of the Coalition for Rainforest Nations (CfRN) Chan-Woo Kim, Republic of Korea, speaking on behalf of the Environmental Integrity Group (EIG) Liliam Ballón Sánchez de Amézaga, Peru, speaking on behalf of the Independent Alliance of Latin America and the Carribean (AILAC) Around the Venue Barbara Hendricks, Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety, Germany, arrives in plenary Hamza Tber, COP 22/CMP 12/CMA 1 Presidency, with Aziz Mekouar, Morocco, COP 22/CMP 12/CMA 1 Presidency Nazhat Shameem Khan, COP 23/CMP 13/CMA 1-2 Presidency, speaks with a delegate Delegates from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Morocco, and the US Delegates between sessions

The first Conference of the Parties (COP1) to the Minamata Convention on Mercury convened for a second day on Monday, 25 September 2017. Meeting in a Committee of the Whole (COW) chaired by Fernando Lugris, Uruguay, delegates discussed issues related to, among others: reporting; financial mechanism including the specific international programme; the Memorandum of Understanding between the COP and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Council; guidance to the GEF; the functions of a permanent secretariat; and effectiveness evaluation. Two contact groups to further discuss reporting and financial mechanism were established and convened during the day. A Friends of the Chair group met in the evening to consider the permanent functions of the secretariat. Delegates also engaged in a thematic dialogue on land during the lunch break, and also attended a Minamata Convention Initial Assessment (MIA) clinic. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, provided daily web coverage and daily reports for COP1. The summary and analysis is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. Morning Plenary - Committee of the Whole (COW) View of the dais (L-R): Sheila Logan, Interim Secretariat of the Minamata Convention; Jacob Duer, Principal Coordinator, Interim Secretariat of the Minamata Convention; Fernando Lugris, Uruguay, COW Chair; Claudia Ten Have, Interim Secretariat of the Minamata Convention; Stadler Trengove, Legal Advisor; and Nina Cromnier, Sweden, Rapporteur Fernando Lugris, Uruguay, COW Chair Angela Rivera, Colombia, speaking on behalf of the Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC) Juan Miguel Cuna, the Philippines Toï Pagnibam Meba, Togo Karissa Kovner, US Sunee Piyapanpong, Thailand Heidar Ali Balouji, Iran Serge Molly Allo'o Allo'o, Gabon Chizuru Aoki, Global Environment Facility (GEF) Andrei Pilipchuk, Belarus Franz Perrez, Switzerland Marc D'Iorio, Canada Fuatino Matatumua-Leota, Samoa Gillian Guthrie, Jamaica Afternoon Plenary View of the room during the afternoon plenary Gbenakpon Macandjou Sandra Gonou, Benin Najib Rahman Said, Afghanistan Ji-Young Lim, Republic of Korea Anahit Aleksandryan, Armenia Andrew McNee, Australia David Lennett, Zero Mercury Working Group Nohelia Carolina Vargas Idiáquez, Nicaragua Yingxian Xia, China Sam Adu-Kumi, Ghana, speaking on behalf of the African Group Puta Tofinga, Kiribati Lilian Corra, International Society of Doctors for the Environment (ISDE) Francis Kihumba, Kenya Elsa Ferreras de Sánchez, Dominican Republic Contact Groups Throughout the Day Contact Group on Reporting Contact Group on the Financial Mechanism Around the Venue Ibrahim Thiaw, Deputy Executive Director, UN Environment, speaks with Jacob Duer, Principal Coordinator, Interim Secretariat of the Minamata Convention John Whitelaw, Consultant with the Interim Secretariat (center), speaks with delegates from the US and Uruguay Delegates from Japan Rolph Payet, Executive Secretary, Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm (BRS) Conventions (right), with delegates from India and Lebanon Delegates speak informally A display listing the countries that have ratified the Minamata Convention, made from the wooden nameplates used at the Diplomatic Conference in Kumamoto in 2013 and refabricated by a Minamata disease patient and carpenter Skin products are tested at the venue to see if they contain mercury

The first Conference of the Parties (COP1) to the Minamata Convention on Mercury, under the theme “Make Mercury History,” began on Sunday, 24 September and is scheduled to conclude on Friday, 29 September 2017, in Geneva, Switzerland. During a brief opening ceremony, delegates heard opening speeches from Marc Chardonnens, Director, Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN), Switzerland, and Ibrahim Thiaw, Deputy Director, UN Environment. Delegates then convened in a plenary to address organizational matters, including election of officers, rules of procedure, and the appointment of a credentials committee. Delegates then established a Committee of the Whole (COW) chaired by Fernando Lugris, Uruguay. After a round of general statements, the COP engaged in discussions on provisionally adopted guidance documents related to supply sources and trade, exemptions for phase-out dates, and emissions. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, provided daily web coverage and daily reports for COP1. The summary and analysis is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Kiara Worth For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. Opening Plenary Musicians welcome delegates to the first day of COP1 Ibrahim Thiaw, Deputy Executive Director, UN Environment Marc Chardonnens, Director, Federal Office for the Environment, Switzerland Jacob Duer, Principal Coordinator, Interim Secretariat of the Minamata Convention Marc Chardonnens, Director, Federal Office for the Environment, Switzerland, is welcomed onto the podium after being elected COP1 President Fernando Lugris, Uruguay, is elected Chair for the Committee of the Whole (CoW) Philip Weech, the Bahamas, speaking on behalf of the Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC) Babajide Alo, Nigeria Kaupo Heinma, EU Mick Saito, Japan, speaking on behalf of the Asia-Pacific Region Charles Brown, World Alliance for Mercury-Free Dentistry Margaret Kaemba, Zambia, speaking on behalf of the African Group Vladimir Lenev, Russian Federation Rolph Payet, Executive Secretary, Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm (BRS) Conventions M.R. Karliansyah, Indonesia Shinobu Sakamoto, a woman living with fetal Minamata disease, speaks on behalf of the International POPs Elimination Network (IPEN) and the Zero Mercury Working Group Around the Venue Delegates meet informally before the start of the opening plenary Gregor Filyk, Canada The mercury drop on display outside the Palais des Nations A young boy admires the inside of the mercury drop

On Friday, 18 August, the Assembly met throughout the day to consider a revised draft decision on the first periodic review of the International Seabed Authority (ISA). Following consultations with capitals, delegates supported a revised schedule of meetings of the ISA organs and subsidiary bodies. Regional consultations were then held throughout the day on a reference to a joint proposal by the Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC) and the African Group on future elections of the members of the Legal and Technical Commission (LTC). Eventually, delegates agreed to “taking into account that the Council will finally consider” the joint proposal prior to the next LTC election, and adopted the decision on the first periodic review. Review Committee Chair Helmut Tuerk (Austria) stated that the decision faithfully reflects the Review Committee’s recommendations and is “a great step forward in ISA’s history.” Assembly President Muianga gaveled the meeting to a close at 3.50 pm. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage, daily reports, and a summary and analysis report from the 23rd Annual Session of the International Seabed Authority. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Francis Dejon For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. L-R: Michael Lodge, ISA Secretary-General; Eugénio João Muianga, Mozambique, Assembly President; Chris Brown, ISA Secretariat; and Helmut Tuerk, Austria, Review Committee Chair Md. Humayun Kabir, Bangladesh, speaking on behalf of the Asia-Pacific Group Carlos Alberto Michaelsen den Hartog, Brazil, speaking on behalf of GRULAC Mehdi Remaoun, Algeria, on behalf of the African Group Michael Lodge, ISA Secretary-General Eugénio João Muianga, Mozambique, Assembly President Jean-Michel Despax, France Sheila Sealy Monteith, Jamaica Ariel Fernández, Argentina Maruthadu Sudhakar, India Shinichi Yamanaka, Japan Kristian Jervell, Norway Delegates from the Asia-Pacific Group consulting Delegates from the African Group consulting with Eugénio João Muianga, Mozambique, Assembly President ISA regional coordinators in informal consultations Helmut Tuerk, Austria, Review Committee Chair Eugénio João Muianga, Mozambique, Assembly President, gaveled the meeting to a close at 3:50 pm Michael Lodge, ISA Secretary-General, congratulates Eugénio João Muianga, Mozambique, Assembly President L-R: Dhisadee Chamlongrasdr, Thailand; John Khoo, Singapore; and Tevita Suka Mangisi, Tonga L-R: Kristian Jervell, Norway; Michael Lodge, ISA Secretary-General; and Kenneth Wong, Canada Secretary-General Lodge with delegates from the African Group ISA staff behind the scenes Liliana Valles, ISA Secretariat, exhibiting ISA merchandise L-R: Michael Lodge, ISA Secretary-General, with Elisa Morgera, Panagiotis Pomakis, Nancy Williams, Asterios Tsioumanis, and Franz Dejon (behind the camera), IISD Reporting Services

On Tuesday, 15 August, the Assembly of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) addressed outstanding administrative matters and considered the annual report of the ISA Secretary General, focusing on: the draft exploitation regulations, cooperation of the ISA with other international bodies, financial issues, capacity building, legal and administrative matters, and transparency. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage, daily reports, and a summary and analysis report from the 23rd Annual Session of the International Seabed Authority. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Francis Dejon For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. L-R: Alfonso Ascencio-Herrera, Legal Counsel and Deputy to the Secretary-General; Michael Lodge, ISA Secretary-General; Christine Griffiths, ISA Secretariat; Eugénio João Muianga, Mozambique, Assembly President; and Chris Brown, ISA Secretariat Eugénio João Muianga, Mozambique, Assembly President Michael Lodge, ISA Secretary-General Chris Brown, ISA Secretariat A view of the ISA Assembly in session Delegates at the ISA Assembly Catherine Nyakoe, Kenya Karen Tan, Singapore Sala Tagicakibau, Fiji Ana Marie Hernando, the Philippines Anne Chantal Nama, Cameroon Cecilia Jaber, Mexico Francis Marwan, Lebanon Masanori Nakano, Japan Mehdi Remaoun, Algeria, on behalf of the African Group Khurshed Alam, Bangladesh Kenneth Wong, Canada Tope Elias-Fatile, Nigeria Graham Leung, Nauru Qingbao Niu, China Dwight Gardiner, Antigua and Barbuda Solomon Korbieh, Ghana Paul Lynch, Cook Islands Tevita Suka Mangisi, Tonga John Fintakpa Lamega, Togo Mohammed Atlassi, Morocco Chris Goldblatt, Fish Reef Project Duncan Currie, Greenpeace Michael Shewchuk, UN Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea L-R: Gavin Watson and Lowri Mai Griffiths, UK Delegates from Singapore Delegates from South Africa Participants from China

On Monday, 14 August, the Council of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) exchanged preliminary views on the draft exploitation regulations that had been submitted by the Secretariat to the Legal and Technical Commission (LTC), and considered draft decisions on: the summary report of the LTC Chair, including a submission from the Netherlands on a tentative approval process of environmentally responsible mining technologies; and future elections of LTC members. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage, daily reports, and a summary and analysis report from the 23rd Annual Session of the International Seabed Authority. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Francis Dejon For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page. L-R: Alfonso Ascencio-Herrera, Legal Counsel and Deputy to the Secretary-General; Michael Lodge, ISA Secretary-General; Christine Griffiths, ISA Secretariat; Ariel Fernández, Argentina, Council President for the 23rd Session; and Gwénaëlle Le Gurun, ISA Secretariat Ariel Fernández, Argentina, Council President for the 23rd Session Michael Lodge, ISA Secretary-General L-R: Andrés Rojas and Frida Armas-Pfirter, Argentina Tevita Suka Mangisi, Tonga Mehdi Remaoun, Algeria, on behalf of the African Group Eduardo Bonilla, Chile René Lefeber, the Netherlands Malakai Finau, Fiji Gaia Puleston, Australia Maruthadu Sudhakar, India Arne Küper, Germany Kathy-Ann Brown, Jamaica Ma Xinmin, China Carlos García Soto, Spain Kate Neilson, New Zealand Arie Poluzzi, Indonesia Gavin Watson, UK Shinichi Yamanaka, Japan Carlos Alberto Michaelsen den Hartog, Brazil, speaking on behalf of GRULAC Jean-Michel Despax, France Ibrahim Zanna, Nigeria Piotr Nowak, Poland L-R: Duncan Currie, Greenpeace; Matthew Gianni, Deep Sea Conservation Coalition; and Simon Walmsley, WWF Karen Tan, Singapore Kristina Gjerde, IUCN Information posters on the ISA L-R: Alfonso Ascencio-Herrera, Legal Counsel and Deputy to the Secretary-General; Wini Broadbelt, the Netherlands; Michael Lodge, ISA Secretary-General; and René Lefeber, the Netherlands Cecilia Jaber, Mexico (left), in a conversation with delegates from Australia Ariel Fernández, Argentina, Council President for the 23rd Session, with Carlos García Soto, Spain L-R: Elisa Morgera, ENB/IISD Reporting Services, in a discussion with René Lefeber, the Netherlands L-R: Malakai Finau, Fiji, in a conversation with Gwénaëlle Le Gurun and Anna Elaise, ISA Secretariat Delegates from the Republic of Korea consulting