Latin American and Caribbean Group

The seventh session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to Prepare a Global Legally Binding Instrument on Mercury (INC7) opened Thursday and is scheduled to conclude on Tuesday, March 15 at the Dead Sea, Jordan. Plenary convened in the morning for the opening of the meeting, which included welcome addresses by Ibrahim Thiaw, Deputy Director of the UN Environment Programme, and Taher Shakhashir, Minister of Environment, Jordan, who was speaking on behalf of King Abdullah II. Delegates reconvened in plenary in the afternoon to continue work on the substantive items on its agenda, including hearing opening statements from regions and countries. In the evening, delegates attended a reception hosted by the Government of Jordan. IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, is providing daily web coverage, daily reports and a summary and analysis report from the 7th session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Mercury (INC 7). The summary and analysis report is available in HTML and PDF formats. 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 ceremony Jacob Duer, interim secretariat of the Minamata Convention Fernando Lugris, Uruguay, INC Chair Taher Shakhashir, Minister of Environment, Jordan Ibrahim Thiaw, UNEP Deputy Executive Director Jordanian dancers perform a traditional dance to open the meeting Jordanian youth recite a pledge to protect the environment Side Events Side event discussing the Jordan Dead Sea industries, hosted by the Government of Jordan Side event 'Gearing up for implementation - what are the first steps?' hosted by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Afternoon Plenary L-R: Masa Nagai, UNEP; Jacob Duer, intermin secretariat of the Minamata Convention; Fernando Lugris, Uruguay, INC Chair; Sheila Logan, interim secretariat of the Minamata Convention; Nina Cromnier, Sweden, Rapporteur; and Andrea Lechner, BRS Secretariat Mohammed Khashashneh, Jordan, speaking on behalf of the Arab Group Reginald Hernaus, EU Agustina Camilli, Uruguay, speaking on behalf of the Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC) Mick Saito, Japan, speaking on behalf of the Asia-Pacific Region David Kapindula, Zambia, speaking on behalf of the African Group Vladimir Lenev, Russian Federation, speaking on behalf of the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) Group Franz Perrez, Switzerland Zhao Wei Jun, China Kasimu Bayero, Nigeria Juan Miguel Cuna, the Philippines Sezaneh Seymour, US Luay Al Mukhtar, Iraq Tuti Hendrawati Mintarsih, Indonesia Around the Venue Delegates gather before the start of plenary Fernando Lugris, Uruguay, INC Chair; Ibrahim Thiaw, UNEP Deputy Executive Director; and Taher Shakhashir, Minister of Environment, Jordan Mohammed Khashashneh, Jordan, welcomes delegates to the meeting Delegates from Brazil The youngest delegate attending the meeting A delegate reads the Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) website Delegates from China review a document Delegates gather informally before the start of plenary Artifacts from Jordan on display around the venue Reception Hosted by the Government of Jordan Delegates gather for the reception hosted by the Government of Jordan Taher Shakhashir, Minister of Environment, Jordan, and Ibrahim Thiaw, UNEP Deputy Executive Director Delegates from Saudi Arabia Delegates throughout the evening