Europe Forges Closer Bond with UN Environment Programme

BRUSSELS, Belgium, September 20, 2004 (ENS) - The European Commission and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) today announced that they will strengthen their cooperation to fight global threats to the environment more effectively.

The agreement takes the form of a Memorandum of Understanding and was signed by Environment Commissioner Margot Wallström and Klaus Töpfer, Executive Director of UNEP.

The agreement will reinforce policy dialogue and collaboration by providing a framework for structured and consistent collaboration. It envisions regular meetings at senior and expert levels, strategic policy discussions and financial co-operation.

The Commission has decided to post a senior official to its delegation at UNEP headquarters in Nairobi to follow UNEP's daily activities.

The strengthened relationship will support implementation of the commitments made at the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development on sustainable consumption and production, biodiversity, water and sanitation, renewable energy and chemicals.

UNEP head Klaus Toepfer and EU Environment Commissioner Margot Wallstrom agreed today to work more closely together. (Photo courtesy European Commission )

It will also help achieve UN Millennium Development Goals such as environmental sustainability and the eradication of poverty and extreme hunger.

Wallstrom said it is important that the Commission fully participates in UNEP's work and contributes actively to the development and implementation of global environment policies.

"This will also strengthen UNEP as the main global environmental organization," she said. "By joining forces, we will be in a better position to cope with today's environmental problems."

“The signing of this memorandum is a big step forward for environmental protection on the global and regional levels where the Commission and UNEP share common objectives,” said Klaus Toepfer.

Now the "really hard work begins," said Toepfer, who is a former German environment minister.

"From combating climate change, to beating poverty in Africa or helping rebuild the devastated infrastructure of post-conflict countries like Afghanistan, the environment and development challenges before UNEP and the EC are immense," he said. "By working together, we have a much better chance of succeeding."

Initially, financial assistance from the Commission will focus on supporting ongoing co-operation activities, such as work on promoting sustainable production and consumption patterns and reducing the loss of global biodiversity. But the two institutions will also consider possibilities to widen their financial co-operation.

Immediate cooperation is expected on:

• Sustainable production and consumption
  
  
• Capacity building in developing countries and countries in transition to assist them in reaching sustainable development and environment-related targets, enforcing international environmental agreements and integrating environmental considerations into their trade policies
  
  
• Supporting the implementation of multilateral environmental agreements, with an initial focus on the 1992 Convention on Biodiversity and agreements on regional seas
  
  
• Providing global access to clean water and sanitation and sustainable energy