Geneva, Switzerland, 7 May 2013
The second Assembly of the Global Alliance for the Development and Deployment of Products, Methods and Strategies as Alternatives to DDT for Disease Vector Control was held in Geneva International Conference Centre in Geneva, Switzerland, on 7 May 2013 from 18.15 to 21.00. The meeting was held as an evening side event to the Ordinary and Extraordinary Meetings of The Conferences of the Parties to the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions. The meeting was organized by the Secretariat of the Global Alliance, which is hosted by the Chemicals Branch, Division of Technology, Industry and Economics (DTIE) of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
Highlights
The meeting served as an opportunity to:
- inform about the transition of the leadership of the Global Alliance from the Secretariat of the Stockholm Convention to UNEP;
- report on the activities undertaken since the First Assembly and present the outcomes of the first meeting of the Steering Committee;
- review the recent developments at the 6th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Stockholm Convention; and
- discuss some thoughts on ways forward for the Global Alliance.
As participants were informed, the transition of leadership did not change the structure of the Global Alliance or the status of the members of the Steering Committee. Important recent events were discussed. This included the first meeting of the Steering Committee and UNEP’s participation in the Global Policy Roundtable on the use of DDT in Malaria Vector Control.
A presentation given by Mr. Michael Macdonald, Consultant for the Vector Control Unit of the Global Malaria Programme of the WHO, stressed the synergies between the work of the Global Alliance and other initiatives implemented by WHO and Roll Back Malaria and called for more effective collaboration. Mr. Macdonald introduced the Global Plan for Insecticide Resistance Management (GPIRM) aiming to tackle the growing threat of insecticide resistance and to facilitate the development of innovate vector control tools and strategies.
The meeting also featured a report by the Steering Committee on progress in implementing the Global Alliance. Its chair, Mr. David Kapindula, provided an overview of the outcomes of the three annual meetings that had been held by the Interim Steering Committee between 2009 and 2011. Notably, the workplan and budget for two biennia 2012-2013 and 2014-2015 had been developed and approved and core activities had been identified.
Another highlight of the meeting were the reports given by the Thematic Groups. Fundraising was identified as a priority and the participants voiced their dedication to advance on this issue and to engage both traditional and non-traditional donors. Meanwhile, participants noted their appreciation for the funding and in-kind contributions that had been provided by the BRS Secretariat, the German Government, Biovision, Mr. Donald Cooper, and UNEP.
The meeting also served as a forum to discuss substantive issues. Some findings voiced during the meeting include the following:
- Insecticide resistance and the lack of entomological monitoring capacity are major challenges.
- Larval control should only be conducted where habitats are “few, fixed and findable”.
- Global funds are investing heavily in the search for alternatives.
- It is important to find alternatives that are not POPs and as cost-effective as DDT.
- Currently, alternatives are more costly than DDT in the short-run; however, long-term considerations should be taken into account.
- Given the relatively high costs associated with the use of human resources for application of insecticides, durability is crucial.
- There is no deadline for stopping the use of DDT in the SC and the phase out is subject to the availability of alternatives.
- It is necessary to conduct more case studies.
Working documents
| Meeting agenda |
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| Meeting Report of the Second Assembly of the Global Alliance for the Development and Deployment of Alternatives to DDT for Disease Vector Control |
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Information documents
| Workplan and budget of the DDT Global Alliance 2012 - 2015 |
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| Decision SC-5/6 on DDT by the Conference of the Parties of the Stockholm Convention |
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| Decision SC-6/1 on DDT by the Conference of the Parties of the Stockholm Convention |
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| Working Document UNEP/POPS/COPS.6/4 on DDT of the Conference of the Parties of the Stockholm Convention |
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| Information Document UNEP/POPS/COPS.6/INF/3: Report by the United Nations Environment Programme on activities undertaken in relation to the Global Alliance for the Development and Deployment of Alternatives to DDT for Disease Vector Control |
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| Update of the Thematic Group to Reduce Barriers to bring New Chemicals and Products to Market (Paul Saoke) |
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Presentations
| Heidi Fiedler: The Global Alliance |
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| David Kapindula: Report from the DDT Global Alliance Steering Committee |
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| Michael Macdonald: Etomology and Vector Control Landscape |
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| Raman Velaydhan: Integrated Vector Management - The Next Steps |
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