C. GEO for Deserts

A new feature of the GEO 4 assessment is the establishment of strong links between GEO and institutions of the multilateral environmental agreements, with a view to facilitating enhanced policy analyses across the GEO 4 chapters.

Preparation of the KEO report will be carried out in a bottom up, collaborative and consultative manner, much like its parent products, the global GEO assessment reports.

Further in kind and financial contributions will be sought in support of the major undertaking which this assessment process constitutes.

The GEO Yearbook 2004 5 has a special focus on gender, environment and poverty, and has been well received.

UNEP, in partnership with the Government of Mauritius, organized a gala dinner to launch the Atlantic and Indian Oceans Environment Outlook, the Caribbean Environment Outlook and the Pacific Environment Outlook, together with the four reports prepared by the Global International Water Assessment programme for the Indian Ocean islands, Pacific islands, Caribbean islands and the Caribbean sea.

About 40 young scientists are taking part in the GEO 4 assessment.

(iii) Fellowships and grants Global Environment Outlook Fellowships provided to students scholars to work with Divisions Regional Offices in the Global Environment Outlook process (10).

In 2004, Governments had agreed to strengthen existing UNEP assessment activities, in particular the Global Environment Outlook process.

The Governing Council would focus on reviewing the state of the global and regional environments and a global intergovernmental and multi stakeholder consultation on the global environment outlook would be held on 19 and 20 February 2005.

Mexico was the first country in the region to produce a GEO type report with quantitative scenario analysis.

During the week of World Environment Day in June 2005, the Bahamas launched its first ever national state of the environment report, developed using the GEO methodology.

The GEO Health Project is an integrated environment and health assessment that has been under way since 2004 in collaboration with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).

The Africa Environment Outlook for Youth project was initiated in 2003.

In addition, more than 50 Governments have nominated about 200 experts to participate in the GEO 4 assessment.

The first, entitled Global Environmental Outlook for Deserts report (GEO Deserts), is scheduled to be published on the occasion of the World Environment and World Desertification Days, respectively 5 and 17 June 2006.

It was agreed, among other things, that GEO 4 would assess the role of environment for development in relation to environmental and social changes that had taken place since the publication of the report of the World Commission on Environment and Development Our Common Future, in 1987.

5 International Atomic Energy Agency, World Energy Outlook 2004, (2004).

DESERTIFICATION, PARTICULARLY IN AFRICA

the United Nations Environment

A total of more than 200 scientists across the globe have been invited to research and draft the 10 chapters of the GEO 4 report.

The GEO Mexico report, also finalized in 2005, has been distributed widely both within and outside the country.

Both UN Habitat and UNEP support the Global Environment Outlook process in planning the development of projects at the local level that analyse the state of the local environment and the impact of cities.

The GEO Cities process was launched in Dakar, Nairobi and Lusaka in close collaboration with the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN Habitat), under the Sustainable Cities Programme.

The on line database holds more than 450 different variables, as national, subregional, regional and global statistics or as geospatial data sets (in the form of maps), covering a wide variety of environmental, social and economic themes such as fresh water, population, forests, emissions, climate, disasters and health.

Global Environment Facility Global Environment Facility, Instrument for the Establishment of the Restructured Global Environment Facility, 1994, as amended, http thegef.org GEF_Instrument3.pdf.

Global Environment Facility

The global environment has been weakened.

The GEO Cities methodology was developed by UNEP and regional partners to allow for integrated environmental assessment at the urban level.

UNEP launched the second volume of the new series Global Environment Outlook Yearbook in 2005, where specific sections are dedicated to the poles.

Cooperation has been initiated with the DeSurvey project, an European Community initiative that will map and study in the European region and in selected pilot countries.

UNEP is collaborating closely with the European Environment Agency (EEA), both in the production of GEO 4 and also on the Agency's next pan European report on environmental state and trends, which is being prepared for the fifth Environment Ministers Conference in late 2007.

Draft decision submitted by the Chairperson of the Committee

OECD Organisation for Economic Co operation and Development

Scope and Coherence of the Land Degradation Activities in the GEF, paras.

The views of the Parties on the Secretariat's performance of these additional activities, where expressed, were mixed, particularly relating to the CST and the GEF.

17 40. The Global Environment Facility

Global Environment Facility

Trade and transport facilitation and development Trade facilitation and regional integration Private sector expectations from the WTO negotiations on trade facilitation Implementation of trade facilitation measures Conclusions and the way forward

Private sector expectations from the WTO negotiations on trade facilitation

The GEF Council exercises most of the key decision making and policy guidance powers of GEF.

(b) The emerging issues examined in the Global Environment Outlook Yearbook 2006, which are the environmental effects of the practice of farming of marine species and the overall impacts of global warming on food production.

The Council exercises most of the key decision making and policy guidance powers of the GEF.

GEF Council, Joint Summary of the Chairs, GEF Council Meeting, May 14 15, 2003, http www.gefweb.org Summary_of_the_Chairs.pdf.

The global FDI environment