Notification 2019-052

Dear Madam/Sir, The purpose of this notification is to invite Parties to nominate an expert for the Informal Advisory Committee to the Access and Benefit-sharing Clearing-House. The Informal Advisory Committee (IAC) was established at the first meeting of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Nagoya Protocol (COP-MOP), in decision NP-1/2 (https://www.cbd.int/doc/decisions/np-mop-01/np-mop-01-dec-02-en.pdf), paragraph 2, to assist the Executive Secretary with the implementation of the Access and Benefit-sharing Clearing-House (ABS Clearing-House) and to provide technical guidance with respect to the resolution of technical and practical issues arising from the ongoing development of the ABS Clearing-House. The decision provides that the IAC shall be composed of 15 experts, primarily from Parties, selected on the basis of nominations provided by Parties. At its third meeting, COP-MOP decided that the IAC will hold at least one meeting and informal online discussions, as needed, during this intersessional period 2019-2020 and report on the outcomes of its work to the fourth meeting of COP-MOP in 2020 (decision NP-3/3 (https://www.cbd.int/doc/decisions/np-mop-03/np-mop-03-dec-03-en.pdf), paragraph 8). It is expected that the meeting of the IAC will be held from 2 to 4 December 2019 in Montreal, Canada. Taking into account the growing number of countries which have become Parties to the Nagoya Protocol, the composition of the IAC will be renewed for this new intersessional period based on nominations from Parties to the Nagoya Protocol. Accordingly, all Parties are invited to nominate one expert. Nominated experts should have knowledge of the Nagoya Protocol, access and benefit-sharing and the ABS Clearing-House or related information-sharing and knowledge management systems. The nomination should be submitted through an official letter signed by the ABS National Focal Point, together with the completed nomination form attached and the curriculum vitae of the nominee. Nominations should be sent by email to secretariat@cbd.int or faxed to +1 514 288 6588 as soon as possible but no later than 30 June 2019. Based on the nominations received, members of the IAC will be selected on the basis of their expertise and taking into account the need to ensure fair and equitable geographical distribution, as well as gender balance. Further details on the IAC meeting will be provided in due course. Please accept, Madam/Sir, the assurances of my highest consideration.

Executive Secretary

To: ABS National Focal Points