The Global Environment Ministerial Forum (GMEF) will be held in Jeju Island, Korea, in 29-31 March 2004 organized by UNEP and hosted by the Government of Korea. Along with the GMEF, the UNEP Governing Council (GC) will also have its 8th Special Session. This ministerial forum/session is an important event in the global environment calendar of events as it is the only global forum of Ministers responsible for the environment to review important and emerging policy issues in the field of the environment.

The Ministerial Consultations will consider the theme 'Environmental Dimension of Water, Sanitation and Human Settlements' as it relates to the follow-up to the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD). The WSSD identified the scarcity and quality of water as one of the most critical issues requiring attention in the 21st century. In light of the objectives of sustainable development and targets set by the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), an ecosystem approach to the management of water, sanitation and human settlements is widely recognized as no longer an option, but a requirement.

It is noted that the WSSD marked the beginning of a process that focuses the sustainable development agenda on implementation, partnerships and coherent action on the ground. The goal of the ministerial-level discussions this time is to identify workable approaches, based on concrete experiences, for expediting implementation of the Millennium and WSSD commitments in relation to the environmental dimension of water, sanitation and human settlements and the centrality of ecosystem approaches in water management.

In parallel, there will be a meeting on capacity building for integrated policy design and implementation for sustainable development and an exhibition on the environmental technology. There will also be special events to deal with such issues as technology transfer in relation to sanitation, and sustainable production and consumption patterns for water, and women, water and sanitation. The UNEP believes the outcome of the GC/GMEF in Jeju in March will make a critical contribution to sustainable development. It has been 4 years since the UNEP Member States adopted a new format in UNEP's Governance by instituting the Global Ministerial Environmental Forum.

For more information: www.2004unepkorea.org