Report of the October 2014 informal meeting on the HNS Convention

Posted: 20/11/2014

By: Thomas Liebert

Dear Colleagues,

The report from the informal meeting on the HNS Convention that took place in London on October 23, 2014 on the margins of the recent IOPC Funds meeting is available here.

The principle points and actions that came out of that meeting are as follows:

HNS Made Easy and Incident Scenarios:

There was agreement that the development of an “HNS Made Easy” publication would be greatly beneficial to all member states in order to engage with stakeholders and decision-makers. The aim of this publication was to highlight the issue or gap that the HNS Convention is addressing. It was also agreed that this be further developed within the HNS Correspondence Group. An initial draft text was circulated in advance and at the meeting and is annexed to the attached report. There will be further communication within in the near future on this specific issue.

International Coordinated Implementation and Ratification:

There was agreement that it was important to continue efforts to coordinate the implementation and ratification of the HNS Convention internationally among those states that are working towards the Convention’s entry into force. A further workshop and/or meeting may be held in 2015 to establish such a timeframe. In the meantime, it was agreed that a chart be developed and circulated within the Correspondence Group for states to provide an update on their progress in implementing and ratifying the Convention. This chart will be circulated in the near future for input.

Please contact me should there be any questions.

Regards,

François Marier