National planning meeting on the implementation of the Rotterdam Convention: identifying elements of a national action plan

Venue: Mercure Hotel, Rue Samsenthai, Vientiane, LaosBackground: The technical assistance programme of the Rotterdam Convention is composed of a range of activities that are tailored to the specific needs of individual countries or small groups of countries with a focus on those actions that are deemed necessary for Parties to implement fully the Convention. An important component of this programme is national planning meetings aimed at helping countries to systematically review the status of implementation of the Convention at the national level. A key element to the success of the consultation is bringing together a range of stakeholders involved in the implementation of the Rotterdam Convention. The meeting will provide an opportunity to review in detail the status of implementation of the Convention within Laos and, for each of the obligations under the Convention, consider what is to be done, by whom and whether and how things might be improved. In addition participants will also consider how the work on the Rotterdam Convention might be integrated with Basel and Stockholm Conventions, as well as with the regional pesticide risk reduction programme and the FAO regional initiatives on sustainable agriculture. Working Languages: Lao and English