Notification 2011-157

Dear Madam/Sir, I am pleased to inform you that, thanks to the financial support provided by Japan and other donors, a regional capacity-building workshop for the updating and revision of National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) for Central Asia countries will be held in Istanbul, Turkey from 17 to 20 October 2011. The workshop is organised by the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (SCBD), in collaboration with the Ministry of Forestry and Water Works of the Republic of Turkey. This workshop is part of a series of regional and sub-regional capacity-building workshops being organised in 2011 and 2012. The purpose of the workshop is to strengthen national capacities for the development, implementation, review, updating and communication of NBSAPs; to help facilitate national implementation of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020; and to translate the Post-2010 Strategic Plan into national targets and commitments (decision X/2, paragraph 17). The workshop will also provide an introduction to other COP-10 outcomes. Please note that the workshop will be held in English with simultaneous interpretation to Russian. Further information is available at: http://www.cbd.int/nbsap/workshops2.shtml. In light of the above, I am pleased to invite you to nominate two representatives of your Government to participate in this workshop. The nomination should be in the form of an official letter addressed to the CBD Executive Secretary signed by yourself, or a senior government official, and should contain the nominees’ names and full contact information, including email addresses. This letter can either be scanned and emailed to secretariat@cbd.int or faxed to the Secretariat at + 1 514 288 6588, no later than 12 September 2011. In submitting nominations, Parties are requested to note that one of the participants should be responsible for the development, updating and/or implementation of the national biodiversity strategy and action plan, and be in a position to translate the capacity gained into concrete actions in support of national implementation. The second nomination should be a person with responsibility and experience of supporting the mainstreaming of biodiversity into national development and poverty reduction strategies and plans or other such initiatives. Upon receipt of nominations, further information on travel and hotel arrangements will be duly communicated. We look forward to receiving your early nominations. I thank you in advance for your support and cooperation. Please accept, Madam/Sir, the assurances of my highest consideration.

Executive Secretary

To: CBD Primary National Focal Points of the following countries: Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Relevant organizations.