ROTTERDAM CONVENTION ON THE PRIOR INFORMED CONSENT PROCEDURE FOR CERTAIN HAZARDOUS – REVISED EDITION (LAWS OF THE FEDERATION OF NIGERIA) ACT

ROTTERDAM CONVENTION ON THE PRIOR INFORMED CONS ENT PROCEDURE FOR CERTAIN HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS AND PESTICIDES IN INTERNA TIONAL TRADE (RATIFICATION AND ENFORCEMENT) ACT

ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS

SECTION

I. Enforcement of the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade Schedule.

2. Short title.

SCHEDULE

The Parties to this Convention

An Act to enable effect to be given in the Fe deral Republic of Nigeria to the Rotter- dam Convention on the Prior Informe d Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade.

[ ]

[Commencement. ]

WHEREAS the Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Chemi- cals and Pesticides in International Trade was adopted by the Member States of the United Nations on the 10th September, 1998;

AND WHEREAS the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has by a decision duly reached in accordance with her constitutional process ratified the said Rotterdam Convention;

AND WHEREAS it is necessary and expedient to enact a law to enable effect to be given to the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous

Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade in the Federal Republic of Nigeria: Now THEREFORE IT Is:

ENACTED by the National Assembly of the Federal Republic of Nigeria-

1. Enforceme nt of the Rotter dam Conve nti on on the Prior Infor me d Consent Pro – cedure for Certain Hazar dous Che mic als and Pesticides in International Tr ade: Schedule

As from the commencement of this Act, the provisions of the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesti- cides in International Trade which are set out in the Schedule to this Act shall subject as thereunder provided, have force of law in Nigeria and shall be given full recognition and effect and be applied by all authorities and persons exercising legislative, executive or judicial powers in Nigeria.

2. Short title

This Act may be cited as the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade (Ratifi- cation and Enforcement) Act.

SCHEDULE

[Section I]

The Parties to this Convention

A WARE of the harmful impact on human health and the environment from certain hazardous chemicals and pesticides in international trade;

RECALLING the pertinent provisions of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Develop – ment and chapter 19 of Agenda 21 on “Environmentally sound management of toxic chemi- cals, including prevention of illegal international traffic in toxic and dangerous products”;

MINDFUL of the work undertaken by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) in the operation of the voluntary Prior Informed Consent procedure, as set out in the UNEP Amended London Guidelines for the Exchange of Information on Chemicals in International Trade (hereinafter referred to as the “Amended London Guidelines”) and the FAO International Code of Con- duct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides (hereinafter referred to as the “International Code of Conduct”);

TAKING into account the circumstances and particular requirements of developing countries and countries with economies in transition, in particular the need to strengthen national capa- bilities and capacities for the management of chemicals, including transfer of technology, providing financial and technical assistance and promoting co-operation among the Parties;

NOTING the specific needs of some countries for information on transit movements:

RECOGNISING that good management practices for chemicals should be promoted in all coun – tries, taking into account, inter alia, the voluntary standards laid down in the International Code of Conduct and the UNEP Code of Ethics on the International Trade in Chemicals;

DESIRING to ensure that hazardous chemicals that are exported from their territory are pack- aged and labelled in a manner that is adequately protective of human health and the environ- ment, consistent with the principles of the Amended London Guidelines and the International Code of Conduct;

RECOGNISING that trade and environmental policies should be mutually supportive with a view to achieving sustainable development;

EMPHASISING that nothing in this Convention shall be interpreted as implying in any way a change in the rights and obligations of a Party under any existing international agreement ap – plying to chemicals in international trade or to environmental protection;

UNDERSTANDING that the above recital is not intended to create a hierarchy between this Convention and other international agreements;

DETERMINED to protect human health, including the health of consumers a nd workers, and the environment against potentially harmful impacts from certain hazardous chemicals and pesticides in international trade;

HAVING agreed as follows:

ARTICLE 1

Objective

The objective of this Convention is to promote shared responsibility and co-operative ef- forts among Parties in the international trade of certain hazardous chemicals in order to protect human health and the environment from potential harm and to contribute to their environmen – tally sound use, by facilitating information exchange about their characteristics, by providing for a national decision-making process on their import and export and by disseminating these decisions to Parties.

ARTICLE 2

Definitions

For the purposes of this Convention:-

(a) “chemical” means a substance whether by itself or in a mixture or preparation and whether manufactured or obtained from nature, but does not include any living organism. It consists of the following categories of pesticide (including severely hazardous pesticide formulations) and industrial;

(b) “banned chemical” means a chemical all uses of which within one or more categories have been prohibited by final regulatory action, in order to protect human health or the environment. It includes a chemical that has been refused approval for first-time use or has been withdrawn by industry either from the domestic market or from further consideration in the domestic approval process and where there is clear evidence that such action has been taken in order to protect human health or the environment;

(c) “severely restricted chemical” means a chemical virtually all use of which within one or more categories has been prohibited by final regulatory action in order to protect human health or the environment, but for which certain specific uses remain allowed. It includes a chemical that has, for virtually all use, been refused for approval or been withdrawn by industry either from the domestic market or from further consideration in the domestic approval process , and where there is clear evidence that such action has been taken in order to protect human health or the environment;

(d) “severely hazardous pesticide formulation” means a chemical formulated for pesticidal use that produces severe health or environmental effects observable

within a short period of time after single or multiple exposure, under conditions of use;

(e) “final regulatory action” means an action taken by a Party, that does not re- quire subsequent regulatory action by that Party, the purpose of which is to ban or severely restrict a chemical;

(f) “export” and “import” mean, in their respective connotations, the movement of a chemical from one Party to another Party, but exclude mere transit operations;

(g) “party” means a State or Regional Economic Integration Organisation that has consented to be bound by this Convention and for which the Convention is in force;

(h) “Regional Economic Integration Organisation” means an organisation con- stituted by Sovereign States of a given region to which its member States have transferred competence in respect of matters governed by this Convention and which has been duly authorised, in accordance with its internal procedures, to sign, ratify, accept, approve or accede to this Convention;

(i) “Chemical Review Committee” means the subsidiary body referred to in paragraph 6 of Article 18.

1. This Convention applies to–

ARTICLE 3

Scope of the Convention

(a) banned or severely restricted chemicals; and

(b) severely hazardous pesticide formulations.

2. This Convention does not apply to–

(a) narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances;

(b) radioactive materials;

(c) wastes;

(d) chemical weapons;

(e) pharmaceuticals, including human and veterinary drugs;

(f) chemicals used as food a by an individual for his or her own personal use in quantities reasonable

for such use.

ARTICLE 4

Designated National Authorities

(1) Each Party shall designate one or more national authorities that shall be authorised to act on its behalf in the performance of the administrative functions required by this Convention.

(2) Each Party shall seek to ensure that such authority or authorities have sufficient re- sources to perform their tasks effectively.

(3) Each Party shall, no later than the date of the entry into force of this Convention for it, notify the name and address of such authority or authorities to the Secretariat. It shall forth – with notify the Secretariat of any changes in the name and address of such authority

or authorities.

(4) The Secretariat shall forthwith inform the Parties of the notifications it receives un – der paragraph (3).

ARTICLE 5

Procedures for Ban on Severely Restricted Chemicals

(1) Each Party that has adopted a final regulatory action shall notify the Secretariat in writing of such action. Such notification shall be made as soon as possible, and in any event not later than ninety days after the date on which the final regulatory action has taken effect, and shall contain the information required by Annex I, where available.

(2) Each Party shall, at the date of entry into force of this Convention for it, notify the Secretariat in writing of its final regulatory actions in effect at that time, except that each Party that has submitted notifications offinal regulatory actions under the Amended London Guide- lines or the International Code of Conduct need not resubmit those notifications.

(3) The Secretariat shall, as soon as possible, and in any event no later than six months after receipt of a notification under paragraphs (1) and (2), verify whether the notification contains the information required by Annex I. If the notification contains the information re- quired, the Secretariat shall forthwith forward to all Parties a summary of the information re- ceived. If the notification does not contain the information required, it shall inform the notify – ing Party accordingly.

(4) The Secretariat shall every six months communicate to the Parties a synopsis of the information received pursuant to paragraphs (1) and (2), including information regarding those notifications which do not contain all the information required by Annex I.

(5) When the Secretariat has received at least one notification from each of two Prior In – formed Consent regions regarding a particular chemical that it has verified meet the require- ments of Annex I, it shall forward them to the Chemical Review Committee. The composition of the Prior Informed Consent regions shall be defined in a decision to be adopted by consen- sus at the first meeting of the Conference of the Parties.

(6) The Chemical Review Committee shall review the information provided in such no – tifications and, in accordance with the criteria set out in Annex 11, recommend to the Confer- ence of the Parties whether the chemical in question should be made subject to the Prior in – formed Consent Procedure and, accordingly, be listed in Annex Ill.

ARTICLE 6

Procedures jor Severely Hazardous Pesticides Formulations

(1) Any Party that is a developing country or a country with an economy in transition and that is experiencing problems caused by a severely hazardous pesticide formulation under conditions of use in its territory, may propose to the Secretariat the listing of the severely haz- ardous pesticide formulation in Annex III. In developing a proposal, the Party may draw upon technical expertise from any relevant source. The proposal shall contain the information re- quired by Part I of Annex IV.

(2) The Secretariat shall, as soon as possible, and in any event not later than six months af- ter receipt of a proposal under paragraph I, verify whether the proposal contains the information

required by Part I of Annex IV. If the proposal contains the information required, the Secretariat shall forthwith forward to all Parties a summary of the information received. If the proposal does not contain the information required, it shall inform the proposing Party accordingly.

(3) The Secretariat shall collect the additional information set out in Part II of Annex IV regarding the proposal forwarded under paragraph II.

(4) When the requirements of paragraphs II and III above have been fulfilled with re- gard to a particular severely hazardous pesticide formulation, the Secretariat shall forward the proposal and the related information to the Chemical Review Committee.

(5) The Chemical Review Committee shall review the information provided in the pro – posal and the additional information collected and, in accordance with the criteria set out in part III of Annex IV, recommend to the Conference of the Parties whether the severely haz- ardous pesticide formulation in question should be made subject to the Prior Informed Con – sent procedure and, accordingly, be listed in Annex III.

ARTICLE 7

Listing of Chemicals in Annex III

(1) For each chemical that the Chemical Review Committee has decided to recommend for listing in Annex III, it shall prepare a draft decision guidance document. The decision guidance document should, at a minimu m, be based on the information specified in Annex I, or, as the case may be, Annex IV, and include information on uses of the chemical in a cate- gory other than the category for which the final regulatory action applies.

(2) The recommendation referred to in paragraph3 together with the draft decision guid- ance document shall be forwarded to the Conference of the Parties. The Conference of the Parties shall decide whether the chemical should be made subject to the Prior Informed Con – sent Procedure and, accordingly, list the chemical in Annex III and approve the draft decision guidance document.

(3) When a decision to list a chemical in Annex III has been taken and the related deci- sion guidance document has been approved by the Conference of the Parties, the Secretariat shall forthwith communicate this information to all Parties.

ARTICLE 8

Chemicals in the Voluntary Prior Informed Consent Procedure

For any chemical, other than a chemical listed in Annex III, that has been included in the Voluntary Prior Informed Consent Procedure before the date of the first meeting of the Con – ference of the Parties, the Conference of the Parties shall decide at that meeting to list the chemical in Annex III, provided that it is satisfied that all the requirements for listing in that Annex have been fulfilled.

ARTICLE 9

Removal of Chemicals from Annex III

(1) If a Party submits to the Secretariat information that was not available at the time of the decision to list a chemical in Annex III and that information indicates that its listing may no longer be justified in accordance with the relevant criteria in Annex 11 or, as the case may be, Annex IV, the Secretariat shall forward the information to the Chemical Review Committee.

(2) The Chemical Review Committee shall review the information it receives under paragraph (1). For each chemical that the Chemical Review Committee decides, in accordance with the relevant criteria in Annex 11 or, as the case may be, Annex IV, to recommend for removal from Annex III, it shall prepare a revised draft decision guidance document.

(3) A recommendation referred to in paragraph (2) shall be forwarded to the Conference of the Parties and be accompanied by a revised draft decision guidance document. The Con – ference of the Parties shall decide whether the chemical should be removed from Annex III and whether to approve the revised draft decision guidance document.

(4) When a decision to remove a chemical from Annex III has been taken and the re- vised decision guidance document has been approved by the Conference of the Parties, the Secretariat shall forthwith communicate this information to all Parties.

ARTICLE 10

Obligations in relation to Imports of Chemicals Listed in Annex III

(1) Each Party shall implement appropriate legislative or administrative measures to en – sure timely decisions with respect to the import of chemicals listed in Annex III.

(2) Each Party shall transmit to the Secretariat, as soon as possible, and in any event not later than nine months after the date of dispatch of the decision guidance document referred to in paragraph (3) of Article 7, a response concerning the future import of the chemical con – cerned. If a Party modifies this response, it shall forthwith submit the revised response to the Secretariat.

(3) The Secretariat shall, at the expiration of the time period in paragraph (2), forthwith

address to a Party that has not provided such a response, a written request to do so. Should the Party be unable to provide a response, the Secretariat shall, where appropriate, help it to provide a response within the time period specified in the last sentence of paragraph (2) of Article 11.

(4) A response under paragraph (2) shall consist of either-

(a) a final decision, pursuant to legislative or administrative measures –

(i) to consent to import;

(ii) not to consent to import;

(iii) to consent to import only subject to specified conditions; or

(b) an interim response, which may include-

(i) an interim decision consenting to import with or without specified condi- tions, or not consenting to import during the interim period;

(ii) a statement that a final decision is under active consideration;

(iii) a request to the Secretariat, or to the Party that notified the final regulatory action, for further information;

(iv) a request to the Secretariat for assistance in evaluating the chemical.

(5) A response under subparagraphs (a) or (b) of paragraph (4) shall relate to the cate- gory or categories specified for the chemical in Annex III.

(6) A final decision should be accompanied by a description of any legislative or admin – istrative measures upon which it is based.

(7) Each Party shall, not later than the date of entry into force of this Convention for it, transmit to the Secretariat responses with respect to each chemical listed in Annex III. A Party that has provided such responses under the Amended London Guidelines or the International Code of Conduct need not resubmit those responses.

(8) Each Party shall make its responses under this Article available to those concerned within its jurisdiction, in accordance with its legislative or administrative measures.

(9) A Party that, pursuant to paragraphs (2) and (4) above and paragraph (2) of Article 11, takes a decision not to consent to import of a chemical or to consent to its import only under

specified conditions shall, if it has not already done so, simultaneously prohibit or make sub – ject to the same conditions –

(a) import of the chemical from any source; and

(b) domestic production of the chemical for domestic use.

(10) Every six months the Secretariat shall inform all Parties of the responses it has re- ceived. Such information shall include a description of the legislative or administrative meas- ures on which the decisions have been based, where available. The Secretariat shall, in addi- tion, inform the Parties of any cases of failure to transmit a response.

ARTICLE 11

Obligations in Relation to Exports of Chemicals Listed in Annex III

1. Each exporting Party shall-

(a) imple ment appropriate legislative or administrative measures to communicate the responses forwarded by the Secretariat in accordance with paragraph (10) of Article 10 to those concerned within its jurisdiction;

(b) take appropriate legislative or administrative measures to ensure that exporters within its jurisdiction comply with decisions in each response not later than six months after the date on which the Secretariat first informs the Parties of such response in accordance with paragraph (10) of Article 10;

(c) advise and assist importing Parties, upon request and as appropriate:

(i) to obtain further information to help them to take action in accordance with paragraph (4) of Article 10 and (4) paragraph (2) (c) below; and

(ii) to strengthen their capacities and capabilities to manage chemicals safely during their life-cycle.

(2) Each Party shall ensure that a chemical listed in Annex III is not exported from its territory to any importing Party that, in exceptional circumstances, has failed to transmit a response or has transmitted an interim response that does not contain an interim decision, unless-

(a) it is a chemical that, at the time of import, is registered as a chemical in the importing Party; or

(b) it is a chemical for which evidence exists that it has previously been used in, or imported into, the importing Party and in relation to which no regulatory action

to prohibit its use has been taken; or

(c) explicit consent to the import has been sought and received by the exporter through a designated national authority of the importing Party. The importing Party shall respond to such a request within sixty days and shall promptly no – tify the Secretariat of its decis ion.

The obligations of exporting Parties under this paragraph shall apply with effect from the expiration of a period of six months from the date on which the Secretariat first informs the Parties, in accordance with paragraph (10) of Article 10, that a Party has failed to transmit a response or has transmitted an interim response that does not contain an interim decision, and shall apply for one year.

ARTICLE 12

Export Notification

(1) Where a chemical that is banned or severely restricted by a Party is exported from its territory, that Party shall provide an export notification to the importing Party. The export notification shall include the information set out in Annex V.

(2) The export notification shall be provided for that chemical prior to the first export following adoption of the corresponding final regulatory action. Thereafter, the export notifi- cation shall be provided before the first export in any calendar year. The requirement to notify before export may be waived by the designated national authority of the importing Party.

(3) An exporting Party shall provide an updated export notification after it has adopted a final regulatory action that results in a major change concerning the ban or severe restriction of that chemical.

(4) The importing Party shall acknowledge receipt of the first export notification re- ceived after the adoption of the final regulatory action. If the exporting Party does not receive the acknowledgement within thirty days of the dispatch of the export notification, it shall submit a second notification. The exporting Party shall make reasonable efforts to ensure that the importing Party receives the second notification.

(5) The obligations of a Party set out in paragraph I shall cease when-

(a) the chemical has been listed in Annex III;

(b) the importing Party has provided a response for the chemical to the Secretariat in accordance with paragraph (2) of Article 10; and

(c) the Secretariat has distributed the response to the Parties in accordance with paragraph (10) of Article 10.

ARTICLE 13

lnformation to Accompany Exported Chemicals

(1The Conference of the Parties shall encourage the World Customs Organisation to assign specific Harmonised System customs codes to the individual chemicals or groups of chemicals listed in Annex III, as appropriate. Each Party shall require that, whenever a code

has been assigned to such a chemical, the shipping document for that chemical bears the code when exported.

(2) Without prejudice to any requirements of the importing Party, each Party shall re- quire that both chemicals listed in Annex III and chemicals banned or severely restricted in its territory are, when exported, subject to labelling requirements that ensure adequate availabil- ity of information with regard to risks and/or hazards to human health or the environment, taking into account relevant international standards.

(3) Without prejudice to any requirements of the importing Party, each Party may re- quire that chemicals subject to environmental or health labelling requirements in its territory are, when exported, subject to labelling requirements that ensure adequate availability of in – formation with regard to risks and hazards to human health or the environment, taking into account relevant international standards.

(4) With respect to the chemicals referred to in paragraph 2 that are to be used for occu – pational purposes, each exporting Party shall require that a safety data sheet that follows an internationally recognised format, setting out the most up-to-date information available, is

sent to each importer.

(5) The information on the label and on the safety data sheet should, as far as practicable, be given in one or more of the official languages of the imp orting Party.

ART[CLE [4

Information Exchange

(1) Each Party shall, as appropriate and in accordance with the objective of this Conven – tion, faci[itate-

(a) the exchange of scientific, technical, economic and legal information concern – ing the chemicals within the scope of this Convention, including toxicological, ecotoxicological and safety information;

(b) the provision of publicly available information on domestic regulatory actions relevant to the objectives of this Convention; and

(c) the provision of information to other Parties, directly or through the Secretariat, on domestic regulatory actions that substantially restrict one or more uses of the chemical, as appropriate.

(2) Parties that exchange information pursuant to this Convention shall protect any con- fidential information as mutually agreed.

(3) The following information shall not be regarded as confidential for the purposes of this Convention-

(a) the information referred to in Annexes I and IV, submitted pursuant to Arti- cles 5 and 6 respectively;

(b) the information contained in the safety data sheet referred to in paragraph (4) of Article 13;

(c) the expiry date of the chemical;

(d) information on precautionary measures, including hazard classification, the nature of the risk and the relevant safety advice; and

(e) the summary results of the toxicological and ecotoxicological tests.

(4) The production date of the chemical shall generally not be considered confidential for the purposes of this Convention.

(5) Any Party requiring information on transit movements through its territory of chemicals listed in Annex 1lI may report its need to the Secretariat, which shall inform all Parties accordingly.

ART[CLE 15

Implementation of the Convention

(1) Each Party shall take such measures as may be necessary to establish and strengthen its national infrastructures and institutions for the effective implementation of this Conven – tion. These measures may include, as required, the adoption or amendment of national legisla- tive or administrative measures and may also include-

(a) the establishment of national registers and databases including safety informa- tion for chemicals;

(b) the encouragement of initiatives by industry to promote chemical safety; and

(c) the promotion of voluntary agreements, taking into consideration the provi- sions of Article 16.

(2) Each Party shall ensure, to the extent practicable, that the public has appropriate ac- cess to information on chemical handling and accident management and on alternatives that are safer for human health or the environment than the chemicals listed in Annex III

(3) The Parties agree to co-operate, directly or, where appropriate, through competent international organisations, in the implementation of this Convention at the sub-regional, re- gional and global levels.

(4) Nothing in this Convention shall be interpreted as restricting the right of the Parties to take action that is more stringently protective of human health and the environment than that called for in this Convention, provided that such action is consistent with the provisions of this Convention and is in accordance with international law.

ARTICLE 16

Technical Assistance

The Parties shall, taking into account in particular the needs of developing countries and countries with economies in transition, co-operate in promoting technical assistance for the development of the infrastructure and the capacity necessary to manage chemicals to enable imple mentation of this Convention. Parties with more advanced programmes for regulating chemicals should provide technical assistance, including training, to other Parties in develop – ing their infrastructure and capacity to manage chemicals throughout their life-cycle.

ARTICLE 17

Non compliance

The Conference of the Parties shall, as soon as practicable, develop and approve proce- dures and institutional mechanisms for determining non-compliance with the provisions of this Convention and for treatment of Parties found to be in non-compliance.

ARTICLE 18

Conference of the Parties

(1) A Conference of the Parties is hereby established.

(2) The first meeting of the Conference of the Parties shall be convened by the Execu – tive Director of UNEP and the Director-General of FAO, acting jointly, no later than one year after the entry into force of this Convention. Thereafter, ordinary meetings of the Conference of the Parties shall be held at regular intervals to be determined by the Conference.

(3) Extraordinary meetings of the Conference of the Parties shall be held at such other times as may be deemed necessary by the Conference, or at the written request of any Party provided that it is supported by at least one-third of the Parties.

(4) The Conference of the Parties shall by consensus agree upon and adopt at its first meeting rules of procedure and financial rules for itself and any subsidiary bodies, as well as financial provisions governing the functioning of the Secretariat.

(5) The Conference of the Parties shall keep under continuous review and evaluation the imple mentation of this Convention. It shall perform the functions assigned to it by the Con- vention and, to this end, shall-

(a) establish further to the requirements of paragraph (6) below, such subsidiary bodies, as it considers necessary for the implementation of the Convention;

(b) co-operate, where appropriate, with competent international organisations and intergovernmental and non-governmental bodies; and

(c) consider and undertake any additional action that may be required for the achievement of the objectives of the Convention.

(6) The Conference of the Parties shall, at its first meeting, establish a subsidiary body, to be called the Chemical Review Committee, for the purposes of performing the functions assigned to that Committee by this Convention. In this regard –

(a) the members of the Chemical Review Committee shall be appointed by the Conference of the Parties. Membership of the Committee shall consist o fa lim- ited number of government-designated experts in chemicals management. The members of the Committee shall be appointed on the basis of equitable geo – graphical distribution, including ensuring a balance between developed and de – veloping Parties;

(b) the Conference of the Parties shall decide on the terms of reference, organisa- tion and operation of the Committee;

(c) the Committee shall make every effort to make its recommendations by con – sensus. If all efforts at consensus have been exhausted, and no consensus

reached, such recommendation shall as a last resort be adopted by a two -thirds majority vote of the members present and voting.

(7) The United Nations, its specialised agencies and the International Atomic Energy

Agency, as well as any State not party to this Convention, may be represented at meetings of the Conference of the Parties as observers. Any body or agency, whether national or interna- tional, governmental or non-governmental, qualified in matters covered by the Convention, and which has informed the Secretariat of its wish to be represented at a meeting of the Con – ference of the Parties as an observer may be admitted unless at least one-third of the Parties present object. The admission and participation of observers shall be subject to the rules of procedure adopted by the Conference of the Parties.

ARTICLE 19

Secretariat

(1) A Secretariat is hereby established.

(2) The functions of the Secretariat shall be-

(a) to make arrangements for meetings of the Conference of the Parties and its subsidiary bodies and to provide them with services as required;

(b) to facilitate assistance to the Parties, particularly developing Parties and Parties with economies in transition, on request, in the implementation of this Convention;

(c) to ensure the necessary co-ordination with the secretariats of other relevant international bodies;

(d) to enter, under the overall guidance of the Conference of the Parties, into such administrative and contractual arrangements as may be required for the effec- tive discharge of its functions; and

(e) to perform the other secretariat functions specified in this Convention and such other functions as may be determined by the Conference of the Parties.

(3) The secretariat functions for this Convention shall be performed jointly by the Ex- ecutive Director of UNEP and the Director-General of FAO, subject to such arrangements as shall be agreed between them and approved by the Conference of the Parties.

(4) The Conference of the Parties may decide, by a three-fourths majority of the Parties present and voting, to entrust the secretariat functions to one or more other competent interna – tional organisations, should it find that the Secretariat is not functioning as intended.

ARTICLE 20

Settlement of Disputes

(1) Parties shall settle any dispute between them concerning the interpretation or appli- cation of this Convention through negotiation or other peaceful means of their own choice.

(2) When ratifying, accepting, approving or acceding to this Convention, or at any time thereafter, a Party that is not a Regional Economic Integration Organisation may declare in a written instrument submitted to the Depositary that, with respect to any dispute concerning the interpretation or application of the Convention, it recognizes one or both ofthe following means of dispute settlement as compulsory in relation to any Party accepting the same obligation –

(a) arbitration in accordance with procedures to be adopted by the Conference of the Parties in an annex as soon as practicable; and

(b) submission of the dispute to the International Court of Justice.

(3) A Party that is a Regional Economic Integration Organisation may make a declara- tion with like effect in relation to arbitration in accordance with the procedure referred to in paragraph (2) (a).

(4) A declaration made pursuant to paragraph (2) shall remain in force until it expires in accordance with its terms or until three months after written notice of its revocation has been deposited with the Depositary.

(5) The expiry of a declaration, a notice of revocation or a new declaration shall not in any way affect proceedings pending before an arbitral tribunal or the International Court of Justice unless the parties to the dispute otherwise agree.

(6) If the parties to a dispute have not accepted the same or any procedure pursuant to paragraph (2), and if they have not been able to settle their dispute within twelve months fol- lowing notification by one party to another that a dispute exists between them, the dispute shall be submitted to a conciliation commission at the request of any party to the dispute. The conciliation commission shall render a report with recommendations. Additional procedures relating to the conciliation commission shall be included in an annex to be adopted by the Conference of the Parties no later than the second meeting of the Conference.

ARTICLE 21

Amendments to the Convention

(1) Amendments to this Convention may be proposed by any Party.

(2) Amendments to this Convention shall be adopted at a meeting of the Conference of

the Parties. The text of any proposed amendment shall be communicated to the Parties by the Secretariat at least six months before the meeting at which it is proposed for adoption. The Secretariat shall also communicate the proposed amendment to the signatories to this Conven – tion and, for information to the Depositary.

(3) The Parties shall make every effort to reach agreement on any proposed amendment to this Convention by consensus. If all efforts at consensus have been exhausted, and no agreement reached, the amendment shall as a last resort be adopted by a three-fourths majority vote of the Parties present and voting at the meeting.

(4) The amendment shall be communicated by the Depositary to all Parties for ratifica- tion, acceptance or approval.

(5) Ratification, acceptance or approval of an amendment shall be notified to the Deposi- tary in writing. An amendment adopted in accordance with paragraph (3) shall enter into force for the Parties having accepted it on the ninetieth day after the date of deposit of instruments of ratification, acceptance or approval by at least three-fourths of the Parties. Thereafter,

the amendment shall enter into force for any other Party on the ninetieth day after the date on which that Party deposits its Instrument of Ratification, Acceptance or Approval of the Amendment.

ARTICLE 22

Adoption and Amendment of Annexes

(1) Annexes to this Convention shall form an integral part thereof and, unless expressly provided otherwise, a reference to this Convention constitutes at the same time a reference to any annexes thereto.

(2) Annexes shall be restricted to procedural, scientific, technical or administra- tive matters.

(3) The following procedure shall apply to the proposal, adoption and entry into force of additional annexes to this Convention-

(a) additional annexes shall be proposed and adopted according to the procedure laid down in paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) of Article 21;

(b) any Party that is unable to accept an additional annex shall so notify the De- positary, in writing, within one year from the date of communication of the adoption of the additional annex by the Depositary. The Depositary shall with- out delay notify all Parties of any such notification received. A Party may at any time withdraw a previous notification of non-acceptance in respect of an additional annex and the annex shall thereupon enter into force for that Party subject to subparagraph (c) below; and

(c) on the expiry of one year from the date of the communication by the Deposi- tary of the adoption of an additional annex, the annex shall enter into force for all Parties that have not submitted a notification in accordance with the provi- sions of sub paragraph ( b) above.

(4) Except in the case of Annex III, the proposal, adoption and entry into force of amendments to annexes to this Convention shall be subject to the same procedures as for the proposal, adoption and entry into force of additional annexes to the Convention.

(5) The following procedure shall apply to the proposal, adoption and entry into force of amendments to Annex III-

(a) amendments to Annex 111 shall be proposed and adopted according to the pro- cedure laid down in Articles 5 to 9 and paragraph 2 of Article 21 ;

(b) the Conference of the Parties shall take its decisions on adoption by consensus;

(c) a decision to amend Annex III shall forthwith be communicated to the Parties by the Depositary. The amendment shall enter into force for all Parties on a date to be specified in the decision.

(6) If an additional annex or an amendment to an annex is related to an amendment to this Convention, the additional annex or amendment shall not enter into force until such time as the amendment to the Convention enters into force.

ARTICLE 23

Voting

(1) Each Party to this Convention shall have one vote, except as provided for in para- graph (2) below.

(2) A Regional Economic Integration Organisation, on matters within its competence, shall exercise its right to vote with a number of votes equal to the number of its member States that are Parties to this Convention. Such an organisation shall not exercise its right to vote if

any of its member States exercises its right to vote, and vice versa.

(3) For the purposes of this Convention, “Parties present and voting” means Parties present and casting an affirmative or negative vote.

ARTICLE 24

Signature

This Convention shall be open for signature at Rotterdam by all States and Regional Economic Integration Organisations on II September, 1998, and at United Nations Headquar- ters in New York from 12 September, 1998 to 10 September, 1999.

ARTICLE 25

Ratification, Acceptance, Approval or Accession

( 1) This Convention shall be subject to ratification, acceptance or approval by States and by Regional Economic Integration Organisations from the day after the date on which the Convention is closed for signature. Instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or acces – sion shall be deposited with the Depositary.

(2) Any Regional Economic Integration Organisation that becomes a party to this Con – vention without any of its member States being a Party shall be bound by all the obligations under the Convention. In the case of such organisation, one or more of whose member States is a Party to this Convention, the Organisation and its member States shall decide on their respective responsibilities for the performance of their obligations under the Convention. In such cases, the Organisation and the member States shall not be entitled to exercise rights under the Convention concurrently.

(3) In its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, a Regional Eco- nomic Integration Organisation shall declare the extent of its competence in respect of the mat – ters governed by this Convention. Any such organisation shall also inform the Depositary, who shall in turn inform the Parties, of any relevant modification in the extent of its competence.

ARTICLE 26

Entry into Force

1) This Convention shall enter into force on the ninetieth day after the date of deposit of the fiftieth instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession .

(2) For each State or Regional Economic Integration Organisation that ratifies, accepts or approves this Convention or accedes thereto after the deposit of the fiftieth instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, the Convention shall enter into force on the ninetieth day after the date of deposit by such State or Regional Economic Integration Organi- sation of its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession.

(3) For the purpose of paragraphs (1) and (2), any instrument deposited by a Regional Economic Integration Organisation shall not be counted as additional to those deposited by member States of that Organisation.

ARTICLE 27

Reservalion

No reservations may be made to this Convention.

ARTICLE 28

Withdrawal

(1) At any time after three years from the date on which this Convention has entered into force for a Party, that Party may withdraw from the Convention by giving written notifi- cation to the Depositary.

(2) Any such withdrawal shall take effect upon expiry of one year from the date of re- ceipt by the Depositary of the notification of withdrawal, or on such later date as may be specified in the notification of withdrawal.

ARTICLE 29

Depositary

The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall be the Depositary of this Convention.

ARTICLE 30

Authentic Texts

The original of this Convention, of which the Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish texts are equally authentic, shall be deposited with the Secretary -General of the United Nations.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, being duly authorised to that effect, have signed this Convention.

Done at Rotterdam on this tenth day of September, one thousand nine hundred and ninety-eight.

ANNEX I

Information Requirements for Notifications Made Pursuant to Article 5

Notifications shall include-

(1) Properties, identification and uses –

(a) common name;

(b) chemical name according to an internationally recognised nomenclature for example, International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), where such nomenclature exists;

( c) trade names and names of preparations;

(d) code numbers: Chemicals Abstract Service (CAS) numbers, Harmonised Sys – tem Customs Code and other numbers;

(e) information on hazard classification, where the chemical is subject to classifi- cation requirements;

(f) use or uses of the chemical; and

(g) physicochemical, toxicological and ecotoxicological properties.

(2) Final regulatory action-

(a) information specific to the final regulatory action-

(i) summary of the final regulatory action;

(ii) reference to the regulatory document;

(iii) date of entry into force of the final regulatory action;

(iv) indication of whether the final regulatory action was taken on the basis of a risk or hazard evaluation, covering a reference to the relevant documentation;

(v) reasons for the final regulatory action relevant to human health, including the health of consumers and workers, or the environment; and

(vi) summary of the hazards and risks presented by the chemical to human health, including the health of consumers and workers, or the environment and the expected effect of the final regulatory action;

(b) category or categories where the final regulatory action has been taken, and for each category-

(i) use or uses prohibited by the final regulatory action;

(ii) use or uses that remain allowed; and

(iii) estimation, where available, of quantities of the chemical produced, im- ported, exported and used;

(c) an indication, to the extent possible, of the likely relevance of the final regula- tory action to other States and regions;

(d) other relevant information that may cover-

(i) assessment of socio-econornic effects of the final regulatory action,

(ii) information on alternatives and their relative risks, where available, such as:

– integrated pest management strategies, and

– industrial practices and processes, including cleaner technology.

ANNEX II

Criteria for Listing Banned or Severely Restricted Chemicals in Annex III

In reviewing the notifications forwarded by the Secretariat pursuant to paragraph (5) of Arti- cle 5, the Chemical Review Committee shall-

(a) confirm that the final regulatory action has been taken in order to protect hu- man health or the environment;

(b) establish that the final regulatory action has been taken as a consequence of a risk evaluation. This evaluation shall be based on a review of scientific data in the context of the conditions prevailing in the Party in question. For this pur- pose, the documentation provided shall demonstrate that-

(i) data have been generated according to scientifically recognized methods;

(ii) data reviews have been performed and documented according to generally recognized scientific principles and procedures; and

(iii) the final regulatory action was based on a risk evaluation involving pre- vailing conditions within the Party taking the action.

(c) consider whether the final regulatory action provides a sufficiently broad basis to merit listing of the chemical in Annex III, by taking into account-

(i) whether the final regulatory action led, or would be expected to lead, to a

significant decrease in the quantity of the chemical used or the number of its uses;

(ii) whether the final regulatory action led to an actual reduction of risk or to a significant reduction of risk for human health or the Party that submitted the notification;

(iii) whether the considerations that led to the final regulatory action being taken are applicable only in a limited geographical area or in other limited circumstances; and

(iv) whether there is evidence of ongoing international trade in the chemical.

1. Export notifications shall contain the following information:

(a) name and address of the relevant designated national authorities of the export- ing Party and the importing Party;

(b) expected date of export to the importing Party;

(c) name of the banned or severely restricted chemical and a summary of the in – formation specified in Annex I that is to be provided to the Secretariat in ac- cordance with Article 5. Where more than one such chemical is included in a mixture or preparation, such information shall be provided for each chemical;

(d) a statement indicating, if known, the foreseen category of the chemical and its foreseen use within that category in the importing Party;

(e) information on precautionary measures to reduce exposure to, and emission of, the chemical;

(f) in the case of a mixture or a preparation, the concentration of the banned or severely restricted chemical or chemicals in question;

(g) name and address of the importer; and

(h) any additional information that is readily available to the relevant designated national authority of the exporting Party that would be of assistance to the des – ignated national authority of the importing Party.

2. In addition to the information referred to in paragraph I, the exporting Party shall provide such further information specified in Annex I as may be requested by th e importing Party.

SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION

No Subsidiary Legislation