Notification 2009-052

Dear Madam/Sir, I am pleased to inform you that there will be a Liaison Group Meeting on Bushmeat from 15-17 October 2009 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in conjunction with the World Forestry Congress. The meeting is being convened by the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), and the International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation (CIC), and with support of the government of Argentina and the European Commission. The purpose of the meeting, pursuant to decision IX/5 of the Conference of the Parties at its ninth meeting, is to support Parties in their efforts to further implement the CBD programme of work on forest biodiversity. The unsustainable hunting and trade of bushmeat, and their impacts on non-target species, have been identified by the Conference of the Parties at its ninth meeting as an issue to be addressed as a matter of priority. The meeting will build on previous efforts of the CBD Liaison Group on Non-Timber Forest Products (including bushmeat), which developed and published recommendations for the conservation and sustainable use of wildlife-based resources (UNEP/CBD/SBSTTA/13/INF/9, and CBD Technical Series nr. 33, available in English and French at www.cbd.int/ts). Specifically, the meeting will aim to further develop and consolidate these recommendations. I am pleased to invite you to nominate one expert to participate in this workshop. Please provide the name and coordinates of your nominee through an official letter addressed to the Executive Secretary, together with a brief outline of the nominee’s area of expertise. In submitting nominations, I would ask that you provide full contact details, including e-mail addresses. The nomination letter should reach the Secretariat no later than 30 June 2009 by fax to: +1 (514) 288-6588, or scanned and attached to an email addressed to: secretariat@cbd.int. Participants from eligible Parties will be provided with air travel, accommodation, meals and an allowance for incidental costs. In submitting nominations, Parties are requested to note that the expert should be involved in national-level implementation of the CBD programme of work on forest biodiversity (decisions VI/22 and IX/5), and/or the development and implementation of policies and measures for the sustainable use of wildlife-based resources. Nominated experts should also be in a position to prepare and present a brief report on challenges and opportunities related to the conservation and sustainable use of bushmeat in their country. Please accept, Madam/Sir, the assurances of my highest consideration.

Executive Secretary

To: CBD National Focal Points in tropical developing countries, c.c.: SBSTTA Focal Points in tropical developing countries, UNFF Focal Points in tropical developing countries