Governments initiated partnership activities in 2005 at the twenty-third session of the UNEP Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum (Decision 23/9) and subsequently strengthened the role of partnerships to effectively manage mercury activities.
UNEP Governing Council Decision 23/9 called for mercury partnerships between governments and other stakeholders as one approach to reducing risks to human health and the environment from the release of mercury and its compounds to the environment. This call is consistent with United Nations General Assembly Resolution 60/215 “Towards Global Partnerships” that defines partnerships as “...voluntary and collaborative relationships between various parties, both public and non-public, in which all participants agree to work together to achieve a common purpose or undertake a specific task and, as mutually agreed, to share risks and responsibilities, resources and benefits”.
At its twenty-fourth session in 2007 (Decision 24/3), the UNEP Governing Council tasked UNEP with working in consultation with Governments and stakeholders in strengthening the UNEP mercury programme partnerships, and identified a number of priorities guiding the work on mercury.
At its twenty-fifth session in 2009 (Decision 25/5), the UNEP Governing Council specified the UNEP Global Mercury Partnership as one of the main mechanisms for the delivery of immediate actions on mercury during the negotiation of the global mercury convention.
At its twenty-sixth session in 2011 (Decision 26/3), the Governing Council acknowledged the progress made by the UNEP mercury programme, including under the Global Mercury Partnership and other initiatives, urged Governments and other stakeholders to continue to support and contribute to the Global Mercury Partnership and all partners to continue their efforts to take immediate steps to reduce risks from mercury exposure. It further requested the Executive Director, subject to the availability of resources, to undertake specific actions in the context of the Global Mercury Partnership to strengthen the capacities of developing countries and countries with economies in transition to initiate or further develop their national inventories of mercury.
At the twenty-seventh and first universal session in 2013 (Decision 27/12), the UNEP Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment welcomed the efforts by the UNEP secretariat and its partners to take immediate action on mercury through the Global Mercury Partnership, urged all partners to continue their efforts and Governments and other stakeholders to continue to support, participate in, and contribute to the Global Mercury Partnership. It further requested the Executive Director to continue to provide the necessary support to the Global Mercury Partnership.
