14 to 16 June 2011, Mahe, Seychelles. A National Forum on Governance and Priority Setting for SAICM Implementation was held in the Seychelles. The workshop was held under the framework of a national project for the implementation of the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM) and consisted of a review of the progress made to date as well as an Action Plan Skills Building Workshop to prepare for the subsequent project activities.

The workshop was attended by some 25 representatives of government, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, academia, and industry as well as UNITAR resource persons. As part of the mid-term review of the project, the National Project Secretariat presented key project documents for discussion and endorsement. These included the National SAICM Capacity Assessment and the terms of reference for an interministerial coordination mechanism on chemicals management. These documents were provisionally endorsed by the participants and finalized after the workshop.

During the Action Plan Skills Building Workshop, UNITAR guided the participants through the process of planning and developing action plans. The participants began drafting action plans for two agreed national priority issues, namely the implementation of the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS) and treatment of chemicals-related and hazardous waste. These action plans will be further developed over the next five months.

The National Forum was hosted by the Department of Environment of Seychelles with technical support provided by UNITAR, and financial support provided by SAICM’s Quick Start Programme Trust Fund.