Call for information: Follow-up to the seventeenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties

The Conference of the Parties took note of the report developed by the lead country, in consultation with the small intersessional working group, on challenges in the implementation of the prior informed consent (PIC) procedure and best practices, possible approaches and initiatives to improve its functioning, as well as options for possible ways forward.

In its seventeenth meeting, the Conference of the Parties by decision BC-17/2 adopted a wide range of recommendations aimed at improving the functioning of the PIC procedure, organized under six broad thematic areas:

  1. Exchange of information with and between competent authorities
  2. Technical, financial and administrative capacity of competent authorities
  3. Transit transboundary movements
  4. Notification decision-making processes 
  5. Variation in approaches to financial guarantees
  6. Issues with maritime transport of waste.

Follow-up

A letter was circulated to all Parties on 27 May 2025, with a summary of the decisions that invited Parties to provide information, including in relation to work to improve the PIC procedure.

 

Calls for information

Respondents

Deadlines for submission 

(a)

Information on whether Parties accept only paper notification and movement document forms, whether they accept both paper and electronic notification documentation or whether they accept only electronic notification documentation, as well as details of the rationale for the approach adopted

Parties

30 September 2025

(b)

Parties’ views on possible solutions to address challenges related to the language of the notification and movement document forms and other challenges reported by Parties in response to sub-question 4 (a) (i) of the national reporting format and as available on the Basel Convention reporting dashboard

Parties

30 September 2025

(c)

Approaches taken regarding the costs of processing the notification and movement documents, including approaches to recover such costs and, where possible, details of the rationale for the approaches

Parties

30 September 2025

(d)

Parties’ views on the use of defined time periods for notification handling and notification decision-making, including views on acceptable time periods

Parties

30 September 2025

(e)

Information on how Parties implement Article 6(5), and on how they address specific situations when their interpretations or definitions of waste differ, including information on how Parties address such situations in their national legislation

Parties

30 September 2025

Comments on work to improve the prior informed consent procedure (a)-(e) (30 September 2025)

  • Parties

Way forward

Parties and observers were invited to submit comments on further options for improving the functioning of the PIC procedure, taking into account decision BC-17/2 and the Report on challenges in the implementation of the PIC procedure and best practices, possible approaches and initiatives to improve its functioning, as well as options for possible ways forward.

The lead country or countries or, in the absence of a lead country, the Secretariat, subject to the availability of resources and in consultation with the small intersessional working group, was requested to prepare a report on further options for improving the functioning of the prior informed consent procedure, taking into account the report set out in UNEP/CHW.17/INF/6 and the comments received by 30 September 2025, for consideration by the Open-ended Working Group of the Basel Convention at its fifteenth meeting and by the Conference of the Parties at its eighteenth meeting.

Comments on further options for improving the functioning of the PIC procedure (30 September 2025)

  • Parties
  • Observers