 |
 |
 |
Dear Colleague:
It is a pleasure to be addressing you for the first time in “Talking Points,” the newsletter of the GEF family. I look forward to many more opportunities in the months ahead.
A large portion of this newsletter reports on the Third GEF Assembly that was held in Cape Town, South Africa, August 29-30, 2006. Although a summary of the Assembly was published and there were extensive reports in the media, we thought readers who were unable to join us would appreciate getting a bird’s eye view of the events in Cape Town.
I am pleased to report excellent progress on substantive issues that are of strategic importance to the GEF. For example, at a special meeting, the GEF Council endorsed the fourth replenishment of the GEF Trust Fund to the tune of $3.13 billion, the biggest replenishment ever in the GEF’s history. In doing so, the Council marked a new era for the GEF and I am fully committed to enhancing the GEF’s effectiveness and increasing its impacts with respect to implementation of the international environmental agreements.
The Assembly itself was hugely successful, thanks also to the superb arrangements made by our host country, the Government of South Africa. We were delighted that the Assembly was opened by H.E. Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Deputy President, and that other South African dignitaries took an active part in the proceedings.
As many of you will know, the GEF has begun implementing the new Resource Allocation Framework (RAF) for the biodiversity and climate change focal areas.
At the time of writing, the 12th Conference of Parties of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change has just concluded in Nairobi, Kenya. The GEF and its partners have participated in the proceedings, working to highlight the development challenges posed by climate change and the need to urgently accelerate adaptation and mitigation measures. In addition, we are preparing for the next meeting of the GEF Council to be held December 5-9, 2006 in Washington, DC. A detailed agenda is included in this newsletter.
I look forward to maintaining contact through this column. I hope you find “Talking Points” to be a useful source of information about the GEF family, and as always, feedback is welcome. I encourage you to share your thoughts with us at secretariat@thegef.org
With best wishes,
Monique Barbut CEO and Chairperson Global Environment Facility
|
