European Union

Highlights for Wednesday, 10 July 2019 "If women stop, the world stops." As discussions focused on SDG 8, decent work and economic growth, representatives from the Women's Major Group dress in red to remind delegates about the important role women play in the global workforce. Posted by IISD Reporting Services on Wednesday, 10 July 2019 HLPF 2019 continued on Wednesday at UN Headquarters in New York. A thematic review on empowering people and ensuring inclusiveness and equality in the morning included two sessions, on the perspectives of small island developing states (SIDS), and of least developed countries (LDCs) and landlocked developing countries (LLDCs). Speakers highlighted innovations, such as a peer review system for voluntary national reviews (VNRs); and challenges, such as high vulnerability and capacity needs, in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). They emphasized mutually reinforcing synergies between achieving the SDGs and the SIDS Accelerated Modalities of Action (SAMOA) Pathway; the Vienna Programme of Action (VPoA) for LLDCs; and the Istanbul Programme of Action for LDCs.In the afternoon, a review of implementation and interrelations among SDGs focused on SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth). Progress on achieving this Goal was reported as being slow, and somewhat mixed: despite an increase in gross domestic product growth globally, the LDCs are falling short of their 7% target; 22% of the young people around the world are not in education, employment, or training; and the increase in labor productivity shows a high variation across regions.Several speakers discussed the impacts of the digital economy, describing it as a "double edged sword" that empowers people but can also have disruptive implications for the future of work. The need to reform educational curricula to ensure that skills match future needs was emphasized, as was the critical need to increase women’s participation in the labor market in general, and in the digital economy in particular.For more details on the day's events and to hear what delegates said in the corridors, see our daily Earth Negotiations Bulletin. IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, provided daily web coverage and daily reports from HLPF 2019. In addition, IISD Reporting Services has published a summary and analysis report from the meeting, which 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. Thematic Review: Perspectives of Small Island Developing States Panel speakers discuss the main findings from the mid-term review of the SAMOA Pathway (L-R): Yvonne Hyde, CEO, Ministry of Economic Development and Petroleum, Belize; Douglas Slater, Assistant Secretary-General for Human and Social Development, Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat; Pat Breen, Minister of State for Trade, Employment, Business, EU Digital Single Market, and Data Protection, Ireland; Mona Juul, Vice-President, ECOSOC; Lesley Brough, ECOSOC Affairs Branch; Moderator Emele Duituturaga, former Executive Director, Pacific Islands Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (PIANGO); Rakesh Bhuckory, Minister Counsellor, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration, and International Trade, Mauritius; and Maria-Francesca Spatolisano, Assistant Secretary-General, Policy Coordination and Inter-Agency Affairs, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA). Pat Breen, Minister of State for Trade, Employment, Business, EU Digital Single Market, and Data Protection, Ireland Rakesh Bhuckory, Minister Counsellor, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration, and International Trade, Mauritius Fiame Naomi Mata'afa, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment, Samoa Stacy Richards-Kennedy, The University of the West Indies, Trinidad and Tobago Yvonne Hyde, CEO, Ministry of Economic Development and Petroleum, Belize Lois Young, Belize, speaking on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) Willy Missack, Pacific Climate Change Collaboration, Influencing, and Learning (PACCCIL) Thematic Review: Perspectives of Least Developed Countries and Landlocked Developing Countries Panel speakers discuss the implementation of the Istanbul Programme of Action for LDCs (L-R): Fekitamoeloa Katoa ‘Utoikamanu, UN High Representative for LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS; Saad Alfarargi, UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Development; Jerry Tardieu, Congressman, Haiti; Mona Juul, Vice-President, ECOSOC; Ziad Mahmassani, Department for General Assembly and Conference Management (DGACM); Moderator Hope Muli, Hivos, Kenya; Ricardo Fuentes-Nieva, Executive Director, Oxfam Mexico. Saad Alfarargi, UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Development Richard Ssewakiryanga, Co-Chair, Civil Society Organization (CSO) Partnership for Development Effectiveness Doma Tshering, Permanent Representative of Bhutan to the UN, and Co-Facilitator of the Political Declaration of the Midterm Review of the Implementation of the Vienna Programme of Action (VPoA) for LLDCs Moderator Hope Muli, Hivos, Kenya Jerry Tardieu, Congressman, Haiti Perks Ligoya, Malawi Khomraj Koirala, Nepal Chika Mercedes Ibeh, Women's Major Group; Vladislav Kaim, Major Group for Children and Youth; and Enma Catu Raxjal, Indigenous Peoples Discussion on SDG 8 – Decent Work and Economic Growth Panel speakers during the session (L-R): Peter Robinson, President, US Council for International Business (USCIB); Darja Isaksson, Director-General, Vinnova, Sweden; Mamadou Diallo, Deputy Secretary-General, International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC); Valentin Rybakov, Vice-President, ECOSOC; Emer Herity, UN DESA; Moderator Moussa Oumarou, Deputy Director-General for Field Operations and Partnerships, International Labour Organization (ILO); and Fu Xiaolan, Professor and Founding Director, Technology and Management Centre for Development, Oxford University. Faryal Ahmed, Statistics Division, DESA Fu Xiaolan, Oxford University Using the interactive platform Sli.do, delegates highlight what they consider to be the most important challenges and opportunities facing employment in the years leading up to 2030. Mamadou Diallo, Deputy Secretary-General, ITUC Darja Isaksson, Director General, Vinnova, Sweden Lead Discussants Olga Algayerova, Executive Secretary, UN Economic Commission for Europe (ECE); and Matthias Thorns, Deputy Secretary-General, International Organization of Employers (IOE) Anne-Beth Skrede, Norway Rodrigo Carazo, Costa Rica Around the Venue Delegates share a moment at the start of a session. Delegates from Morocco Delegates from Italy Delegates from the Dominican Republic Delegates from Kuwait Delegates speak informally between sessions. Visitors to the UN watch the proceedings of HLPF from the observation window. Celebrating the 100-year anniversary of the ILO, an exhibition around UN Headquarters highlights the importance of ensuring social justice and decent work. In the SDG Media Hub, Red, the Angriest Bird, commits himself to climate action, to the delight of visitors to the UN.

Highlights for Friday, 5 July 2019 OEWG 41 Co-Chairs Laura-Juliana Arciniegas, Colombia, and Alain Wilmart, Belgium, congratulate each other on a successful OEWG. OEWG 41 convened for its final day on Friday, 5 July 2019, in Bangkok, Thailand.Delegates met in the morning for contact and informal groups on the terms of reference (ToR) for Multilateral Fund (MLF) 2021-2023 Replenishment study; unexpected emissions of CFC-11; ongoing reported emissions of carbon tetrachloride (CTC); stocks of methyl bromide; and the ToR for the composition of the Technology and Economic Assessment Panel (TEAP).All of the groups concluded their discussions, with deliberations set to resume at the 31st Meeting of the Parties (MOP 31) to be held in Rome, Italy in November 2019. Highlights of the contact and informal group discussions include: how to improve licensing systems to achieve compliance; reporting systems under the Vienna Convention and the Montreal Protocol not replacing national-level obligations; the need for the TEAP to take preparations for hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) phase-down plans into account as part of the MLF Replenishment Study ToR; and how to define stocks in response to a proposed draft decision inviting parties to submit information, voluntarily, on methyl bromide stocks. Two side events were held: ‘Cooling without warming the planet: Opportunities to converge business and sustainability goals’ presented by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), and ‘A roadmap for sustainable cooling-what will it take?’ presented by the World Bank. Closing plenary resumed in the late afternoon. The Co-Chairs thanked delegates for their participation during the OEWG, saying a better understanding had been reached on items that are crucial to the progress for the Protocol. The meeting closed at 5:54 pm.As the meeting closed and delegates left the conference centre, there was a sense of completion and satisfaction as delegates had reached a point in deliberations where they felt comfortable forwarding issues to MOP 31. Saying goodbye, one delegate remarked that the big issues weren’t insurmountable at OEWG 41 as parties generally found a way forward, expressing hope that this would continue at MOP 31. IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) meeting coverage, is providing daily web coverage from OEWG 41. In addition, IISD Reporting Services has published a summary and analysis from the meeting, which is available in HTML and PDF. Photos by IISD/ENB | Sean Wu For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page Contact Group on CFC-11 issues Philip Owen, EU Martin Sirois, Canada Contact Group on CTC Co-facilitators Patrick McInerney, Australia, and Leslie Smith, Grenada Henry Wohrnschimmel, Switzerland Informal Group on Stocks of Methyl Bromide View of the room during the informal group Cornelius Rhein (right), EU, consulting with Niccolò Costantini, EU; Ole-Kristian Kvissel, Norway; and Henry Wohrnschimmel, Switzerland Informal Group on the Review of the TEAP ToR Participants during the informal group The dais during the informal group Plenary OEWG 41 Co-Chair Alain Wilmart, Belgium Agnieszka Tomaszewska and Janusz Kozakiewicz, Poland Özge Tümöz Gündüz and Ülkü Fusün Ertürk, Turkey; and Youssef Hammami, Tunisia Yawo Dandjesso, Togo Mario Francisco Correia Ximenes, Timor-Leste Philippe Chemouny, Canada, speaking with Helen Walter-Terrinoni and Helen Tope, TEAP Co-Chairs Osvaldo Patricio Álvarez Pérez, Chile, gives a warm hug to Ozone Secretariat Executive Secretary Tina Birmpili View of the dais during the afternoon plenary Gene Smilansky, US OEWG 41 Co-Chair Laura-Juliana Arciniegas, Colombia, giving closing remarks John Thompson, US, speaking informally with Ozone Secretariat Executive Secretary Tina Birmpili after the closing plenary OEWG 41 Co-Chairs Laura-Juliana Arciniegas, Colombia, and Alain Wilmart, Belgium, with members of the Ozone Secretariat Around the Venue Ozone Secretariat posing for a family photo Suely Machado Carvalho, Marco González, Bella Maranion, TEAP; and Cecilia Mercado, Multilateral Fund Secretariat