MEA Dialogue 2: Strengthening cooperation between UNEA, UNEP and MEAs to enhance effective implementation at the national level including through means of implementation.

  

 

Wednesday, 28 February, from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m.

Languages: AR, ZH, EN, FR, RU, ES

Modality: fully in-person, webcasted

MEA Dialogue 2 concept note PDF

Moderator: Mr. Ibrahim Thiaw

Key messages

  1. UNEA, with its universal membership, and UNEP have a unique convening role of joining efforts towards coherent support for Member States to achieve the common objectives on climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution. 

  1. Strengthening cooperation and coordination among the MEAs as well as between UNEP and the MEAs accelerates implementation at national level. Coordination between MEA national focal points and other relevant authorities is needed to address the environmental challenges coherently at the national level where the implementation of the environmental commitments takes place.  

  1. UNEA and UNEP have the opportunity to take a leadership role to support coherent and effective implementation of MEAs at the national level and facilitate the diverse use of means of implementation to foster implementation.  

  2. New sources of financing and innovative funding mechanisms are required as the foundation for skyrocketing implementation. The collaboration between UNEP, multilateral development banks and international financial institutions is key.  

  3. Incentivizing central banks and private sector in addition to traditional international funding sources is crucial.  

  1. Innovative solutions and thinking out of the box are must-haves to support further development of means of implementation at all levels, especially towards civil society stakeholders. 

Speakers

Mr. Ibrahim Thiaw - Part 1

Mr. Ibrahim Thiaw - Part 1

Moderator - Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification

Ibrahim Thiaw was appointed as Executive Secretary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in February 2019.

From 2013 to 2018, he served as Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director of UNEP, where he played a key role in shaping the organization's strategic vision and mandate and strengthening collaborations with Governments and other stakeholders.
 
Before joining the United Nations, he was the Acting Director General of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Mr. Thiaw started his career in Mauritania, his home country, serving in the Ministry of Rural Development for 10 years. He holds an advanced degree in forestry and forest product techniques.

Mr. Osvaldo Alvarez-Perez - Part 1

Mr. Osvaldo Alvarez-Perez - Part 1

Chile - President of the Sixth Conference of Parties to the Minamata Convention on Mercury

Osvaldo Alvarez–Perez has extensive experience in international policymaking and environmental governance, specifically in the chemicals and hazardous waste field. He has held several leadership roles in various international conventions and conferences. 

Mr Alvarez-Perez has also previously served as President of the Basel Convention COP-15, President of the Rotterdam Convention COP-9, President of the Stockholm Convention COP-6. 

He began his work in the chemicals and hazardous waste sector in 2006 when the Chilean Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Department for the Environment) appointed him as the Officer-in-charge of Chemicals and Waste Conventions.

H.E. Ms. Leila Benali - Part 1

H.E. Ms. Leila Benali - Part 1

President of UNEA, Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development of Morocco

H.E Dr. Leila Benali was appointed by His Majesty King Mohammed VI on 7 October 2021 as Minister of Energy Transition and Sustainable Development. In 2019, she was also appointed as a member of the Special Commission on the Development Model (SCDM) mandated to re-think the Kingdom’s development trajectory.   

Dr. Benali has a background in industry, banking and public policy and is a graduate of Ecole Mohammadia d’Ingenieurs (EMI) Rabat and Ecole Centrale Paris. She also holds a MSc in political science and a PhD in Economics Summa Cum Laude from Sciences Po Paris.

Dr. Benali has expertise in the formulation of energy reforms and policies, corporate strategies, and strategic investments and acquisitions for public and private stakeholders. 

H.E. Mrs. Arlette Soudan Nonault

H.E. Mrs. Arlette Soudan Nonault - Part 1

Minister of Tourism and Environment of the Republic of Congo, COP President for Abidjan Convention and Bamako Convention

- Technical Coordinator of the Congo Basin Climate Commission;

- President of the Bureau of COP 13 for the Abidjan Convention and President of COP 3  of the Bamako Convention

 

 

Mrs. Camila Isabel Zepeda Lizama - Part 1

Mrs. Camila Isabel Zepeda Lizama - Part 1

Co-chair of the Bern III Conference, Director General for Global Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mexico

With over fifteen years of experience in the Mexican Federal Government, Ms. Zepeda currently serves as Director General for Global Affairs in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in charge of advancing Mexico's position in multilateral forums on transversal issues such as: global governance; environment and natural resources; climate change and the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development.   

She is Mexico´s Chief Negotiator for most Multilateral Environmental Agreements and was appointed Head of the Mexican Delegation for the UNFCCC COP28 in United Arab Emirates, as well as at COP15 of the Convention on Biological Diversity in Canada in 2022. 

H.E Aziz Abdukhakimov

H.E Aziz Abdukhakimov - Part II

President of the Conference of Parties to the Convention on Migratory Species, Minister of Ecology, Environmental Protection, and Climate Change of the Republic of Uzbekistan

H.E Abdukhakimov is the Minister of Ecology, Environmental Protection and Climate change of the Republic of Uzbekistan. Prior to his appointment, he has served in several portfolios including as Chief Economist at the Central Bank of Uzbekistan, Head of Macro-Economic Development Department at the Cabinet of Ministers of Uzbekistan and Chairman of State Committee for State Property Management of Uzbekistan. 

He has also served as Minister of Labour and Social Protection of Uzbekistan and Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan, overseeing Tourism, Sports, Culture, Media, Education and Healthcare sectors. 

Mr. David Cooper - Part 2

Mr. David Cooper - Part 2

Acting Executive Secretary of the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)

Dr. David Cooper is the Acting Executive Secretary of the CBD Secretariat since 2023. Prior to this appointment, David had been the Deputy Executive Secretary at the CBD Secretariat since October 2015.

David has more than 30 years of experience in environmental and agricultural science and policy, and international negotiations, including more than 20 years with the CBD. As Secretary of the fifteenth meeting of the CBD COP 15, held in Kunming, China (in October 2021) and in Montreal, Canada (in December 2022), David was instrumental in facilitating the complex pathway that led to the successful finalisation and adoption of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

Ms. Sanda Ojiambo - Part 2

Ms. Sanda Ojiambo - Part 2

Chief Executive Officer & Assistant Secretary-General, United Nations Global Compact

Sanda Ojiambo of Kenya was appointed Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations Global Compact by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in April 2022.  She previously served as CEO & Executive Director of the Global Compact as of June 2020.

Ms. Ojiambo has over 20 years’ experience in the public, multilateral and private sectors including as Head of Sustainable Business and Social Impact, Safaricom Plc in Kenya, capacity development work in CARE International and UNDP Somalia.

Ms. Ojiambo holds a M.A. in Public Policy from the University of Minnesota, USA, and a B.A. in Economics and International Development from McGill University, Canada.

Mr. Haoliang Xu

Mr. Haoliang Xu - Part II

UN Under Secretary-General and UNDP Associate Administrator

Haoliang Xu was appointed UN Under-Secretary-General and UNDP Associate Administrator by the United Nations Secretary-General in June 2023.

He previously served as UN Assistant Secretary-General, UNDP Assistant Administrator and Director of Bureau for Policy and Programme Support and was UN Assistant Secretary-General and UNDP Assistant Administrator and Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific from September 2013 to July 2019.

Prior to this, he served as Deputy Regional Director of the Regional Bureau for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States in New York (2010-2013); UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Kazakhstan (2007-2010); Country Director in Pakistan (2005-2007); Deputy Resident Representative for Programme, Pakistan (2004-2005); Country Manager and Senior Deputy Resident Representative, UNDP Timor-Leste (2002-2004); Deputy Resident Representative, UNDP Iran (2000-2002); Programme Manager, Regional Bureau for Asia and the Pacific, New York (1997-1999); Programme Officer/Junior Professional Officer, UNDP Kazakhstan (1995-1997).

Before joining the UN, Mr. Xu was a computer-aided design engineer with Louis Berger International Inc. in New Jersey and an assistant lecturer at Tongji University in Shanghai, China.

Mr. Xu, a Chinese national, holds a Bachelors in Engineering from Tongji University (China), and a Masters’ of Science in Management from the Stevens Institute of Technology (USA). He also holds a Masters’ of International Affairs in Economic Development and Policy Analysis from Columbia University (USA).

WHEN:
26 Feb 2024 - 1 Mar 2024
WHERE:
Nairobi, Kenya

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