As of 30 April 2023, 44 per cent of the assessed contributions for the year 2023 had been paid to the CMS Trust Fund, which amounts to €1,426,924. The total unpaid contributions as of 30 April 2023 amount to € 3,506,882 (€ 1,779,787 for 2023 and € 1,727,095 for prior years).

As communicated through Notification 2022/021, the 14th Meeting of the Conference of Parties (COP) will take place from 23 to 28 October 2023 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

In accordance with Para.10 of UNEP/CMS/Resolution 13.2, Parties with arrears of three or more years should be excluded from holding office in Convention Bodies and be denied the right to vote at the COP. Furthermore, Parties with arrears of three or more years are not eligible to receive funding for delegates to attend the Convention’s meetings in accordance with Para 9 of the above Resolution.

The high level of unpaid assessed contributions is creating challenges for the operations of the CMS Secretariat. Parties with arrears are therefore urged to resolve any unpaid contributions at their earliest convenience.

Parties are reminded to regularly check the updated status of all assessed contributions, published on the CMS website: https://www.cms.int/assessed-contributions-parties.

To facilitate efficient recording, CMS Parties are also requested to appropriately indicate the reference code of 40MSL in the payments made to the CMS Trust Fund. A short notification to the CMS Secretariat upon payment would be highly appreciated.

Furthermore, as recommended by the 53rd Meeting of the Standing Committee in October 2022, Parties are invited to provide alternate contact details for communications on assessed contributions, to increase the likelihood that emails will be received and acted upon.

For any reconciliation of records and submission of alternate contact details, please write to Ms. Leah Kirangu, Finance Assistant, CMS Secretariat at [email protected].