Geneva, 26 November 2019 – In accordance with Article XV of the Convention and Resolution Conf. 4.6 (Rev. CoP18) respectively, the amendments to the CITES Appendices as adopted at CoP18 (17-28 August 2019, Geneva) and the new, revised and continued Resolutions and Decisions adopted at CoP18 enter into force today, namely 90 days after that meeting for all Parties except those which make reservations in accordance with paragraph 3 of Article XV in the case of the Appendices.
The new Appendices and lists of valid Resolutions and Decisions are accessible on the CITES website.
The Secretariat detailed the amendments to the Appendices agreed at CoP18 in Notification to the Parties No. 2019/052 of 3 October 2019 and provided a provisional version of the new Appendices themselves in Notification to the Parties No. 2019/055 of 16 October 2019.
Decisions of the Conference of the Parties usually contain short-term tasks to be achieved by the Parties, Permanent Committees and the Convention Secretariat between meetings of the Conference of the Parties, whilst Resolutions set out statements of long-term policy and the interpretation of terms used in the text of the Convention. The latter includes a new CITES Strategic Vision: 2021-2030
The Resolutions and Decisions cover a wide array of issues, ranging from the enhancement of the regulation of trade in various species of plants and animals and efforts needed to combat illegal trade, to capacity building, compliance, law enforcement, and engagement of indigenous peoples and local communities. Many of the Decisions lay down the specific tasks of the Secretariat, and several others map out specific steps to be taken by Parties and the Secretariat to implement the new CITES Strategic Vision post-2020.
The record-setting 357 active Decisions are matched by the new record number of trade transactions under CITES, which has just reached 20 million since 1975 when CITES entered into force. The most ambitious programme of work adopted by CITES Parties at CoP18 manifests the determination of CITES Parties to ensure that such trade is legal, sustainable and traceable.
The successful implementation of the programme will require the full engagement of all CITES Parties, the Permanent Committees and CITES partners, both public and private. The Secretariat will be working hard to raise the significant additional funds required for activities and we count on the strong support of donors.