20-24 Mar 2017 Brasilia, Brazil | Intergovernmental meetings
Delegates from the Latin American and Caribbean countries that adhere to the regional initiative for the effective application of Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development in the region – which refers to access to environmental information, participation and justice – will meet in Brasilia, the capital of Brazil, from March 20 to 24 to continue negotiations toward a regional agreement on these matters.
Authorities, government officials, representatives of civil society and experts from international bodies will participate in the Sixth Meeting of the Negotiating Committee of the Regional Agreement on Access to Information, Public Participation and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean (Principle 10), a gathering organized by ECLAC and the government of Brazil.
The meeting will be inaugurated on Monday, March 20 at 14.30 Brasilia time (-3 UTC/GMT) by Alicia Bárcena, ECLAC’s Executive Secretary, and Brazilian Minister of Foreign Affairs Aloysio Nunes Ferreira (or his representative). Others to be present include José Sarney Filho, Minister of the Environment; Torquato Lorena Jardim, Minister of Transparency, Oversight and Comptroller-General; Herman Benjamin, Justice of Brazil's Superior Court of Justice; Rômulo Paes, Director of Rio+ Centre; Karetta Crooks and Joara Marchezini, representatives from the Public (coming from Saint Lucia and Brazil, respectively).
At the event, negotiations on the regional agreement’s substantive aspects will continue on the basis of the fifth version of the text compiled by the Presiding Officers of the process – the Technical Secretariat of which is held by ECLAC – which incorporates the proposals put forth by countries during the Fifth meeting of the Negotiating Committee, which was held in Santiago, Chile on November 21-25, 2016.
At the Sixth Meeting, negotiations on articles 9 and 25 of the compiled text will continue, pending issues regarding flexible ways of working will be examined, and a report by the Secretariat on the possible administrative, financial and budgetary implications of the agreement will be presented.
On this occasion, the sixth meeting will include a high-level segment on Environmental Justice, organized jointly with Brazil’s Superior Court of Justice (STJ). In addition, the online launch of the Observatory on Principle 10 in Latin America and the Caribbean will take place. This is a web tool that will track the laws, policies, treaties and jurisprudence that guarantee that the rights of people to information, participation and justice in environmental matters are fully applied.
Members of the media are invited to attend this meeting. Journalists must have their media credentials or their identity documents with them to gain access.
The gathering will be broadcast live via the Internet. More information, including the complete program, is available at this link.
What: Sixth meeting of the Negotiating Committee of the Regional Agreement on Principle 10.
Who:
- Authorities and government officials from 23 Latin American and Caribbean countries, international experts and representatives of civil society.
Inauguration (Monday, March 20, 1430 Brasilia time, -3 UTC/GMT) by:
- Alicia Bárcena, ECLAC’s Executive Secretary.
- Aloysio Nunes Ferreira, Brazil’s Minister of Foreign Affairs (or his representative).
When: Monday, March 20 to Friday, March 24, 2017.
Where: Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Esplanada dos Ministérios H Palácio do Itamaraty. Zona Cívico-Administrativa, Brasilia – DF, DF 70.170-900, Brazil.
