Gearing up for CSD 13 – April 11 until April 22. A brief preparatory note for the CSD, some thoughts on the current development and speaking opportunities

Close to 900 representatives from civil society have preregistered for this year’s CSD. Reliable sources say that based on earlier experiences more than half of those will show up for the two weeks of intensive negotiations on the Water, Sanitation and Human Settlements issues.

Preparation starts at home The Chair’s text from the IPM, the Intergovernmental Preparatory Meeting, including a matrix over all the suggested commitments in a possible plan of action is available on the CSD home page. As this will set the tone for the three first days of discussion, it is well worth your while to read it and study it.

CSD made easy. The UN appears as an impressive, fascinating and daunting work place, probably for all, but perhaps especially for the new-comer. Such a work place is run smoothly by a set of rules and regulations, and knowing these rules will make work easier.

The Major Groups1, first recognised in the Agenda 21 Rio Summit document, have been delegated a set of responsibilities in the CSD process; and each major groups tries to deliver services of various kinds to their constituency. SDIN, the sustainable Development Issues Network; working for the global community of NGOs and the NGO caucuses at CSD, is made up of three network secretariats2. They were asked by the CSD to help work with logistics to facilitate work for the NGOs during the CSD process. In that spirit, the SDIN group organises an open orientation meeting for representatives of civil society Sunday April the 10th between 15:00 hrs and 18:00 hrs. (3 until 6 pm at the Crown Plaza Hotel, 42nd street and 1st Avenue in New York. (see below for details.)

NOTE: Changes to the weekly schedule. NOTE! Major Groups better or worse off? Please check “the CSD-13 Organisation of Work”.

Two weeks may appear a long time away from the home base, but given the multitude of tasks and severity of themes discussed during a CSD, it is often just about enough time to go around. A number of official delegates have prevailed upon the Chair to alter the first week’s flow of events a little, allowing all present time to study, work and deliberate on the Chair’s text on Thursday, April 14. Thus the Thursday in the first week has been set aside for informal meetings. As a consequence, the proposed interactive session with the Major Groups were deleted. At first glance this may seem a preposterous idea. At a time when the international community of governments is calling for stronger commitments from all parties involved and relying heavier and heavier on civil society to carry out projects, civil society is being deprived of their opportunity to be heard at the negotiating table. Or so it may appear. A

1 The 9 major groups are: Women, Youth, Indigenous Peoples, Farmers, NGOs, Trade Unions, Local Authorities, Science and Technology, the Private Sector. 2 TWN, Third World Network, Malaysia, for Asia and Latin America ELCI, Environment Liaison Centre International, Kenya, for Africa; ANPED, the Northern Alliance for Sustainability, the Netherlands for Europe and North America.

1 number of NGOs have already reacted to the suggestion of deleting the interactive session with some well-understood irritation.

However - This is what happened as far as we understand, and apparently there seems to be sound and reasonable arguments behind the decisions of the Bureau:

First we would like to remind all our readers that during the first decade of CSD, initiated during the Rio +5 session in 1997, the Interactive Sessions with Major Groups lasted 1 and a half day, three entire plenary sessions, all with official delegates presents. This year’s session, 2005, was suggested for 1 ½ hour. We might perhaps have reacted strongly to that reduction in the first place. However, as some have been quick to point out – this decade of CSD is different in terms of almost all modalities.

Precedence created during CSD 12 Under the leadership of the Norwegian Minister of Environment, Mr. Børge Brende, Chair of CSD 12 (2004), the Major Groups were integrated in totality in the ongoing review process, and given more entry points into the ongoing work in the plenary than ever before. This precedence was then continued during this year’s IPM in February.

Discussing how to use the CSD 13 in April with maximum effect and efficiency, the CSD Bureau decided at its last meeting (March 29) on a number of issues: 1- that the Regional Perspective Sessions, originally scheduled for three half-day sessions, be merged into one half-day session, on the afternoon of 11 April 2005. The Bureau however took up the need expressed by many delegates to have time to study the text that would be negotiated as well. The Bureau discussed the matter and agreed that 2 - the thematic discussions on water, sanitation, and human settlements be moved up in schedule and 3 - that there be a water/sanitation combined session, a session on global water and sanitation follow-up, as well as an expanded inter-linkage session, focusing on the linkages among the three themes and cross-cutting issues. 4 - It was agreed that these thematic discussions would be based on the policy options and practical measures in the Chair’s IPM text, focusing on those requiring a concerted global effort, and addressing the cross-cutting issues. The Chair has invited panellists of UN agencies and IGOs to lead off discussions.

Then the Bureau addressed the issues of Major Groups. In the interest of presenting a Chair’s draft text as early as possible in the first week, the Bureau initially decided to change the session devoted to an interactive discussion with major groups from a two-hour block of time on Thursday afternoon, 14 April, to a ninety-minute block on Thursday morning.

During the Chair’s briefing to delegations held after the Bureau meeting, the revised Programme of Work was further modified in response to a G-77/China proposal to maintain and support the integrated participation of major groups throughout thematic discussions that would be held on Tuesday 12 and Wednesday 13 April, and eliminate the stand-alone interactive discussion with the major groups on Thursday morning, noting that on Thursday it would be too late to reflect major groups’ views in the Chair’s draft text. None of the delegations attending the briefing objected to this proposal, which was subsequently endorsed by Chair Ashe. (Thursday will be used by delegations to consult).

2 In response to this new development, the CSD Secretariat outlined the specific topics to be addressed in the thematic sessions to be held on Tuesday and Wednesday, noted that major groups would likely be limited to two or three speaking opportunities per topic, and asked that the organizing partners review the revised Programme of Work (available at: http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/csd/csd13/org_workcsd13.pdf).

Had the Major Groups intervention possibilities been deleted totally during the first week of this year’s CSD, global governance would have taken a blow. To compensate for the loss of the Thursday interactive session with the Major Groups, it is envisioned that Major Groups would be given at least 2 entry points per thematic discussion in the course of the 10 sessions scheduled on (making it a possible 20 entry points) Tuesday, April 12 and Wednesday April 13. At every prepared statement of approximately 2 minutes, the Major Groups would also be allowed to distribute their statements in the room, as are all delegations as well. The Major Groups were also given to understand, that at the discretion of the Chair, given time, representatives of the Major Groups would also be called upon to comment on the ongoing discussion, if they so wish.

It was also further decided that the Chair’s text would be made available to all delegations including the Major Groups simultaneously on Thursday morning, April the 14th.

Preparations for CSD-13: The CSD Secretariat has made a User-Friendly Matrix of the Chair’s IPM Summary recently posted to the website, which presents an organized table of the policy options and practical measures outlined in the Chair’s Summary, including references to specific examples and key implementation actors. This matrix will be used as a reference tool to guide discussions during CSD-13.

The CSD Secretariat informed the Organising Partners the following: “Discussions (Tuesday and Wednesday April 12 and 13 – our addition) will be based on the Chair’s Summary of the IPM, and the Chair will present the draft elements for decisions on Thursday morning (14 April, 9.00 am) for negotiations, which will commence on Friday morning. Although speaking opportunities may be limited, it is stressed that all major groups seats on the floor should be filled and all representatives should be prepared to offer focused comments as time permits.”

“No changes have been made to the Programme of Work during second week; an interactive discussion with major groups and Ministers is planned during the High-level Segment on Thursday, 21 April from 4:30 to 6:00 pm. The format for this discussion will follow the past practice of three blocks of time for three major groups speakers, followed by time for questions and discussion.”

Major Groups – serious players at CSD 13 There is so far, as we understand, no final decisions on the modalities for the end negotiations on the Chair’s text that will commence Friday morning, and continue on Monday April the 18th and Tuesday April the 19th. It is however the explicit wish of all Major Groups to be further integrated into these plenary sessions as well. Thus, giving up the Thursday (April 14) interactive sessions can be accepted, with a new set of modalities in place concerning the

3 Major Groups, and where the Major Groups may participate with the same set of interventions as has now been granted during Tuesday and Wednesday (first week). As such, the Major Groups may have been given a serious role to play as serious players.

The approximate time for the intervention possibilities of the various Major Groups will be decided on at a Bureau meeting Sunday afternoon, April the 10th and duly published in the NGO Conference daily Newsletter “Taking Issues”. The time slots will also be announced during the morning NGO session between 09:00 and 10:00 in Conference room B on Monday April the 11th.

Can NGOs and other major Groups live up to the challenges? Obviously, what is at stake is a well-negotiated document, serious commitments on the issues and the credibility of the Major Groups as serious players. It is all up to us to coordinate our efforts, and develop sound statements. To allow us to do that, the SDIN group has provided the following:

Logistical opportunities. The morning meeting at 09:00, conference room B Every morning Monday through Friday both weeks, between 09:00 and 10:00, a morning meeting for NGOs and likeminded persons will take place in Conference Room B. the meeting is organised for participating NGOs and likeminded persons to make sense of the ongoing sessions. There will be opportunities to ask questions, and to meet some of the key players, also from governments. Documents central to the day’s deliberations as well as key documents important to the ongoing negotiation will be distributed. A representative from the CSD secretariat will meet with us every day, and take us through the logistics of the day. These morning sessions have almost a set agenda – basically looking like this:

Opening of the morning meeting Report-back from the ongoing negotiations on the water issue, the human settlements issue and the sanitation issue, including meeting various people central to ongoing negotiations Report-back on the proceedings, including the caucus meetings of the previous day Appointing of the speakers for the various slots Appointing the persons to follow the proceedings and report back to the morning meeting Contentious issues to focus on during the present day What to look out for concerning the following day Any other business Announcements

These are almost 10 agenda points, we have maximum 60 minutes at our disposal, thus this gives us roughly 6 minutes per point.

Caucus meetings, daily at 19:00 hrs, conference room B Mapping and monitoring the lobby efforts, developing statements etc.. During CSD 12, the caucus people met at 19:00 hrs and discussed contents and input into the various statements. This proved to be a functional practice, and it seems only sensible to repeat this. These meetings were naturally run by the caucuses themselves,

4 and the meetings were open to any other participating NGO with an interest in the subjects at hand.

The meetings were held on a regular basis during the IPM, proved functional, and it is proposed that these meetings continue to provide the participating NGOs to develop their interventions and arrive at consensus statements. Given the negotiating roles the major Groups have been given this time, these meetings may take on an important role. The caucuses will themselves set the agenda as they see fit, chair the meetings, make report backs to the following morning meeting etc.

Conference room B The SDIN Group approached the CSD secretariat with a request for a major groups room. Conference room B has been set aside for this purpose. The room will allow for impromptu meetings when no other meeting is scheduled to take place. Conference room B also comes equipped with four or five computers, including printers and a copying machine. Participants must however bring their own copy or print papers. To quote the note from the CSD Secretariat: “Conference Room B (located in the 1st basement of the Secretariat building) is reserved for all major groups representatives to use throughout CSD-13 for caucus and other coordination meetings. It is equipped with four computers that allow Internet access, printers, and copiers. Major groups are asked to supply their own paper, as it is not provided by the Secretariat.”

Making use of the daily, conference newsletter “Taking Issue” We have been able to put together a reasonably professional team of journalists this time. These people are generalists with expertise knowledge on how to put together a newsletter, a fair knowledge of the issues of the CSD and with a keen interest in writing and promoting NGOs and their issues. The caucuses should presumably represent the NGO expertise on the issues. To what extent can the caucuses also make use of the newsletter to promote important issues? “Taking Issue” represents an opportunity to hit hard against foes, to strike an upbeat note for a friend, to be ironic and polemical, in short to make an eloquent stand for the issues, as only the NGOs can do, when they are at their best. But to do this, we all need to come prepared, and perhaps even in advance of the CSD, bring issues and backgrounds so the newsletter staff can start producing!

Registration: The CSD Secretariat has noted a high level of participation anticipated at CSD-13. Thus they requested that the organizing partners remind those representatives already in possession of a UN grounds pass to ensure that their names would be reflected in the participants list by remembering to stop at the registration desk in the Visitor’s Lobby at some point during the week. (Which means not necessarily the first day! The registration desk would be open on Sunday 10 April from 1:00 to 4:00 pm, and beginning at 8:30 am on Monday 11 April. A detailed scheduled will be posted on the web at: http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/csd/csd13/mg_registration_schedule_csd13.htm

5 An open orientation meeting for participating NGOs and like- minded people at CSD At the Crown Plaza Hotel in New York from 3:00 until 6:00 in the afternoon of Sunday, the 10th of April 2005.

SDIN – the Sustainable Development Issues Network, ELCI, TWN and ANPED – would like to invite all participating NGOs and other invited persons to this meeting:

Water, sanitation and human settlements in this year’s well organised agenda –

Introduction: But how do we behave, interact and influence the process? This three hour meeting attempts to give the interested NGO participant as well as other invited persons first hand information on the “new CSD”. And to help give life to what may appear as a cumbersome, but exiting process, we are pleased to announce that two persons who are among the most knowledgeable persons on the CSD, will be present and give us first hand information and answer questions. They are the CSD Major Groups Responsible person, Ms Federica Pietracci and the Assistant Director of NGLs. Ms Zehra Aydin.

Ms Aydin and Ms. Pietracci have both followed and worked with the development of the CSD since the mid 90s, and played crucial roles in developing the participation of the Major Groups as integral and valuable players in the CSD process. They were also largely responsible for making the major groups input into the WSSD in Johannesburg in 2002 a success. This work session will be valuable to all of us, as the new CSD offers a number of challenges and opportunities, some of which we may not be totally aware of.

The challenge: We are approaching the “new” CSD, the UN Commission for Sustainable Development. CSD 12 left most of us somewhat relieved and perhaps a bit hopeful as to the renewed spirit that was invoked into the CSD Review process. Still – we were all wondering about what the policy session would offer. We are about to see and find out:

Important documents that are of importance concerning the upcoming CSD are found on the CSD homepage – at the following address: http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/index.html Among these documents are: “CSD-13 organization of Work” and “Chair’s Explanatory Note on CSD-13”. It is also well worth your while to download the matrix at: http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/csd/csd13/matrix.pdf

We advice all concerned partners to study these documents closely – they offer the informed player many opportunities to work with the process.

It seems that all major players, all stakeholders have a possibility to make the new CSD be really “new”, the final result will depend on our collective input.

The Agenda of the afternoon will be: 1 - The purpose of the CSD

6 The task is expressed in the mandate set for this year’s CSD, and to quote the information note from the Chairman if CSD-13: ”The mandate of CSD-13 is to build on the progress made during the “review session” at CSD- 12 and to adopt policy decisions that would enable the implementation of practical measures and options related to the three thematic areas (water, sanitation and human settlements). The main aim of CSD-13 therefore is to mobilize action by all stakeholders at all levels for the further implementation of Agenda 21 and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation (JPOI).

2 – How are the two years, the review process and the two sequences of this year (the IPM and the CSD proper) tied together? CSD 12 made a report and a number of recommendations –? this year is supposed to be an action oriented process. The Chair has made a report from the IPM – what are we exactly looking for this time?

3 – What is the importance of the different sequences of the CSD process – How do the speaking slots work this time around with the decision to discard the interactive session on Thursday afternoon? What are the functions of the plenaries, the partnerships fair, the interactive sessions and the side events? And how are they tide together?

4 – How can NGLS and the major groups interact during the CSD

5 – Which are the do’s and don’ts of the CSD? In addition to the fact that major groups are not allowed to hit delegates, there are a number of other rules we need to know. The formal and logistical process of the UN as well as the CSD may appear cumbersome. But how can we live with and work with and under the rules of engagement and procedures?

6 - How does the High Level Segment relate to the ongoing CSD negotiations, and what will be the role of the Major Groups in these sessions?

7 – Which are the major challenges and the toughest choices to be made during the coming two weeks of negotiations? Ms. Pietracci and Ms. Aydin are invited to challenge the audience.

The meeting will be facilitated by Saradha Ayer, Senior Policy adviser of TWN and Jan- Gustav Strandenaes, Senior Policy Adviser of ANPED, both also from the SDIN Group.

Respectfully and cordially Jan-Gustav Strandenaes, Senior policy adviser, ANPED – for the SDIN Group.

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