INTERGOVERNMENTAL NEGOTIATING COMMITTEE FOR AN
INTERNATIONAL LEGALLY BINDING INSTRUMENT
FOR IMPLEMENTING INTERNATIONAL ACTION ON
CERTAIN PERSISTENT ORGANIC POLLUTANTS

First session
Montreal, 29 June-3 July 1998
Item 4 of the provisional agenda

1/1. ROLE OF NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS IN THE PREPARATORY
PROCESS FOR THE UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON ENVIRONMENT
AND DEVELOPMENT

UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Forty-fifth session

REPORT OF THE PREPARATORY COMMITTEE FOR THE UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON
ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT

17 October 1990

Decision 1/1. Role of non-governmental organizations in the preparatory process for the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development

1. At its 22nd meeting, on 14 August 1990, the Preparatory Committee agreed that the effective contributions of non-governmental organizations in the preparatory process were in its interest.

2. The was agreement on broad-based involvement by relevant non-governmental organizations.

3. The Preparatory Committee’s policy should be to encourage an equitable representation of non-governmental organizations from developed and developing countries and from all regions and also to ensure a fair balance between non-governmental organizations with an environmental focus and those with a development focus. The Preparatory Committee would encourage the participation of scientific and other organizations.

4. The Preparatory Committee decides that, only for the purpose of its first session, the following rules would apply without prejudice to any decision that might be taken by the General Assembly at its forty-fifth session:

(a) Non-governmental organizations shall not have any negotiating role in the work of the Preparatory Committee;

(b) Relevant non-governmental organizations may, at their own expense, make written presentation in the preparatory process through the Secretariat in the official languages of the United Nations as they deem appropriate. Those written presentations will not be issued as official documents except in accordance with United Nations rules of procedure;

(c ) Relevant non-governmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council may be given an opportunity to briefly address plenary meetings of the Preparatory Committee and meetings of the Working Groups. Other relevant non-governmental organizations may also ask to speak in such meetings. If the number of such requests is too large, the Preparatory Committee shall request the non-governmental organizations to form themselves into constituencies and each constituency to speak through one spokesman. Any oral intervention by a non-governmental organization would, in accordance with normal United Nations practice, be at the discretion of the Chairman and with the consent of the Preparatory Committee or the Working Group, as the case may be.

5. The Committee noted with appreciation the initiative taken by the Secretary-General of the Conference to seek extrabudgetary resources, in addition to the voluntary fund established pursuant to General Assembly resolution 44/228 of 22 December 1989, in order to facilitate access in the preparatory process to especially important contributions that would not otherwise be available, particularly through the effective participation of institutions and experts from developing countries in various aspects of the preparatory process. In that context, the Secretary-General was requested to utilize those resources, inter alia, to enable representatives from relevant non-governmental organizations from developing countries, in particular the least developed among them, to participate in the preparatory process and the Conference, either independently or as members of official delegations if their countries so decide.

6. The Chairman would, with the assistance of the chairmen of the regional groups, other co-ordinating groups and the Secretariat, propose a procedure for determining non-governmental organizations’ competence and relevance to the work of the Preparatory Committee.

7. The Preparatory Committee recommended to the General Assembly that it consider at its forty-fifth session the question of participation of non-governmental organizations in the preparatory process for the Conference taking into account the decision adopted by the Preparatory Committee at its first session.