1. Adopts the Financial Rules for the Administration of the Trust Fund for the Convention on Biological Diversity, which are attached as annex I to this decision, to apply in conjunction with the general procedures governing the operations of the Fund of the United Nations Environment Programme and the Financial Regulations and Rules of the United Nations;
2. Designates the United Nations Environment Programme as the Trustee of the Trust Fund for the Convention on Biological Diversity;
3. Decides that the Trust Fund shall be established for an initial period of two years, beginning on 1 January 1995 and ending on 31 December 1996;
4. Adopts the budget for 1995, which is attached as annex II to this decision;
5. Urges all the Parties to pay promptly their contributions to the Trust Fund, based on the scale set forth in the appendix to the budget;
6. Requests the Parties and States not Parties to the Convention, as well as governmental, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations and other sources, to contribute to the Trust Fund;
7. Requests the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme to ensure, by advances, that the 1995 budget of the Convention is financed until such time as sufficient contributions have been paid in 1995 to allow for the functioning of the Secretariat;
8. Takes note of the indicative budget for 1996, also attached as annex II to this decision, and directs the Secretariat to prepare an indicative budget that would provide for implementing the remainder of the medium-term programme of work;
9. Directs the Secretariat to consider carefully all offers of support from other organizations and to cooperate with them with a view to making the most effective use of the competencies and resources available.
1. Adopts for 1995 the scale for contributions contained in the Appendix to the budget (annex II), based on the United Nations scale of assessments for the apportionment of the expenses of the United Nations adjusted to provide that no one contribution shall exceed 25 per cent of the total and that no contribution from a least developed country Party shall exceed 0.01 per cent of the total. The contribution referred to in paragraph 3 (a) of the Financial Rules shall be due 1 January 1995;
2. Being aware that a comprehensive review of all aspects of scale methodology is to be presented to the General Assembly of the United Nations at its fiftieth session, requests the Secretariat to make it available, as well as information related to scale methodology in other international organizations and information provided by Governments to assist the second meeting of the Conference of the Parties in its consideration of this matter;
3. Decides to transfer to the next meeting of the Conference of the Parties, for further consideration, paragraph 4 of the Financial Rules contained in annex I of the present decision;
4. Also decides to transmit paragraph 16 of the Financial Rules to the second meeting of the Conference of the Parties for further consideration;
5. Decides that at its second meeting it will agree upon and adopt a Financial Rule governing the determination of the scale, taking account of paragraphs 2 and 3 above, and a Financial Rule governing decision-making under the Financial Rules, taking into account paragraph 4 above.
1. The Conference of the Parties to the Convention shall designate an organization (hereinafter referred to as the Trustee) which shall establish and manage the Trust Fund for the Convention on Biological Diversity (hereinafter referred to as the Trust Fund) in accordance with these rules.
2. The Trust Fund shall be used for funding the administration of the Convention including the functions of the Secretariat.
3. The Trust Fund shall be financed from:
4. It is for the Conference of the Parties to determine the scale referred to in paragraph 3 (a) above. The scale is to be based on the United Nations scale of assessments for the apportionment of the expenses of the United Nations [adjusted to provide that no one contribution shall exceed 25 per cent of the total, [and] no contributions shall be required when the United Nations scale provides for a contribution of less than 0.1 per cent], [and no developing country Party shall be required to pay more than any developed country Party]. The contributions referred to in paragraph 3 (a) shall be due on 1 January of each calendar year.
5. All contributions shall be paid in United States dollars or its equivalent in a convertible currency and into a bank account to be specified by the Trustee. In conversion of currencies into United States dollars, the United Nations operational rate of exchange shall be used.
6. Accounting records shall be kept in such currency or currencies as the Trustee deems necessary.
7. (a) Budget proposals expressed in United States dollars covering the expenditure and income from contributionsreferred to in paragraph 3 (a)aboveshallbepreparedbythehead of theSecretariat(hereinafter referred to as the Executive Secretary) for periods of two calendar years at the minimum. At least 90 days before the date fixed for the opening of each ordinary meeting of the Conference of the Parties, these budget proposals shall be dispatched by the Executive Secretary to all Parties to the Convention.
(b) The budget shall, in accordance with Rule 16, be approved by the Conference of the Parties and, if necessary, be revised at an ordinary or extraordinary meeting of the Parties.
8. Contributions referred to in paragraphs 3 (b) and (c) shall be used in accordance with any terms and conditions agreed between the Executive Secretary and the respective contributor. At each ordinary meeting of the Conference of the Parties, the Executive Secretary shall present a report on contributions received and expected as well as their sources, amounts, purposes and conditions.
9. The Executive Secretary may commit resources against the Trust Fund only if such commitments are covered by contributions already received. In the event that the Trustee anticipates that there might be a shortfall in resources over the financial period as a whole, it shall notify the Executive Secretary, who shall adjust the budget so that expenditures are at all times fully covered by contributions received.
10. The Trustee, on the advice of the Executive Secretary, may make transfers from one budget line to another within the budget in accordance with the Financial Regulations and Rules of the United Nations.
11. Contributions referred to in paragraph 3 (a) above from States and regional economic integration organizations that become Parties to the Convention after the beginning of a financial period shall be made pro rata temporis for the balance of that financial period. Consequent adjustments shall be made at the end of each financial period for other Parties.
12. Contributions not immediately required for the purposes of the Trust Fund shall be invested and any interest so earned shall be credited to the Trust Fund.
13. It is for the Conference of the Parties and the Trustee to agree on an administrative support charge to be paid to the Trustee.
14. At the end of each calendar year, the Trustee shall transfer any balance to the following calendar year and submit to the Conference of the Parties, through the Executive Secretary, the certified and audited accounts for that year as soon as practicable. The Trust Fund shall be subjected to the internal and external auditing procedure of the United Nations as laid down in its Financial Regulations and Rules of the United Nations.
15. In the event that the Conference of the Parties decides to terminate the Trust Fund, a notification to that effect shall be presented to the Trustee at least six months before the date of termination selected by the Conference of the Parties. The Conference of the Parties shall decide, in consultation with the Trustee, on the distribution of any unspent balance after all liquidation expenses have been met.
[16A. The Parties shall reach agreement by consensus on:
[16B. The Parties shall make every effort to reach agreement on the budget by consensus. If all efforts to reach consensus on the budget have been exhausted and no agreement has been reached, the budget shall, as a last resort, be adopted by a [two-thirds] [four-fifths] majority vote of the Parties present and voting representing a [two-thirds] [four-fifths] majority vote of the developing country Parties present and voting and a [two-thirds] [four-fifths] majority vote of the other Parties present and voting.]
17. Any amendments to these rules shall be adopted by the Conference of the Parties by consensus.
United Nations scale of assessments 1995*
Scale for the Trust Fund with 25percent ceiling and no least developed country Party paying more than 0.01percent
Contributions as per 6 December1994
Parties
(per cent)
US$
Albania
0.01
0.02
752
Antigua & Barbuda
Argentina
0.48
0.75
36 118
Armenia
0.08
0.13
6 020
Australia
1.46
2.29
109 860
Austria
0.85
1.34
63 959
Bahamas
0.03
1 505
Bangladesh
479
Barbados
Belarus
0.37
0.58
27 841
Belize
Benin
Bolivia
Brazil
1.62
2.55
121 899
Burkina Faso
Cameroon
Canada
3.07
4.83
231 006
Chad
Chile
China
0.72
1.13
54 177
Colombia
0.11
0.17
8 277
Comoros
Cook Islands
Costa Rica
Côte d'Ivoire
Cuba
0.07
5 267
Czech Republic
0.32
0.50
24 079
Democratic People's Republic of Korea
0.04
0.06
3 010
Denmark
0.70
1.10
52 672
Djibouti
Dominica
Ecuador
Egypt
El Salvador
Equatorial Guinea
Estonia
0.05
3 762
Ethiopia
European Community
2.50
119 675
Fiji
Finland
0.61
0.96
45 900
France
6.32
9.93
475 557
Gambia
Georgia
0.16
0.25
12 039
Germany
8.94
14.05
672 703
Ghana
Greece
Grenada
Guinea
Guyana
Hungary
0.15
0.24
11 287
Iceland
2 257
India
0.31
0.49
23 326
Indonesia
0.14
0.22
10 534
Italy
4.79
7.53
360 430
Japan
13.95
21.93
1 049 687
Jordan
Kazakhstan
0.26
0.41
19 564
Kenya
Kiribati
Luxembourg
Malawi
Malaysia
Maldives
Marshall Islands
Mauritius
Mexico
0.78
1.23
58 692
Micronesia (Federated States of)
Monaco
Mongolia
Myanmar
Nauru
Nepal
Netherlands
1.58
2.48
118 889
New Zealand
0.38
18 059
Nigeria
Norway
0.55
0.86
41 386
Pakistan
0.09
4 515
Papua New Guinea
Paraguay
Peru
Philippines
Portugal
Republic of Korea
0.80
1.26
60 197
Romania
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Samoa
San Marino
Senegal
Seychelles
Slovakia
0.10
7 525
Spain
2.24
3.52
168 552
Sri Lanka
Swaziland
Sweden
1.22
1.92
91 801
Switzerland
1.21
1.90
91 048
Tunisia
Uganda
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
5.27
8.28
396 548
Uruguay
Vanuatu
Venezuela
0.40
0.63
30 099
Viet Nam
Zaire
Zambia
Zimbabwe
62.10
100.00
4 787 000
* United Nations Report of the Committee on Contributions, Supplement No. 11 (A/49/11).