The Executive Director of UNEP, the Chair of the IOMC, honorable ministers, distinguish delegates, ladies and gentlemen,

Last night, I asked one of my advisors who comes from the private sector what he would like to me say today. The answer was “If I can wish, I would like you not to say anything”. Indeed, we do need more time to work than to listen to the opening address. However, I have to do my job.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I would like to share with you my gut feeling and belief that the SAICM will soon be a global failure. And I would like to repeat, the SAICM will soon be a global failure. There are at least three reasons for that.

First, for the success of the SAICM we need huge financial support. How much additional money does all governments and the development partners commit so far for the SAICM implementation, very little? The Precom 3 in Vienna ended with several issues being put in bracket, including the whole section on the financial considerations. I am quite convinced that there will be only minimal financial commitment towards the end of this meeting. At most we will have only modest financial support to hire some people in the secretariat, and if we are lucky enough some small funds will be set aside for a Quick Start Program. We will have money for us to travel around the world to talk, but very little for serious implementation. These small money will come mainly by shifting the old money from somewhere else. I salute the courage of the President of the Precom to put the word “additional” into the first para of the section on financial considerations. She is very brave, wise and strong, like most Swedish ladies. Her leadership remind me of the year 1994 when we started the IFCS in a meeting in Stockholm, we also started with a very strong Swedish lady chairing the first IFCS forum.

Of course, ladies and gentlemen, money is not the only essential factors for success, we also need wisdom, social support and community involvement, and the real willingness to change among all partners.

Second, successful chemical management require strong multi-sectoral involvement and commitment. From the first Prepcom until now, I see no change in the representations of the participants. Our meetings are represented mainly by one sector. When we go back home the sector that mainly represented here are usually one of the not so powerful sector in the government. How can they push this political agenda? How can they get strong commitment with enough local resources to implement SAICM?

Third, if we are going to be successful, those that are affected by chemicals have to actively involve. They are the farmers, the workers, the children, the citizens. They must be invited to tell their real stories. To tell us how their friends and relatives suffered and die in the field, in the factories, and in their rural cottages. And to tell us how some of them have succeeded in protecting themselves. I have not seen any of them here. The representation of civil society on chemical management here are mainly a few old faces, and even have difficulties funding themselves to this meeting. To be successful, we do need very strong civil societies like those that fight with AIDS, and those that fight with the landmines. We need new faces, new generations, and new groups of NGOs that can really move the global society, the IGOs, the development partners and the national governments.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Please accept my sincere apology of hurting your feeling and make you fell bad and hopeless since the first day of the meeting. With this bad and hopeless feeling from the beginning, I am sure your feeling can only be improved and you will be happier each day and most happy at the end of the meeting. I really wish that what I have just said will soon be proved to be totally wrong.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Some of us come here for shopping, some for sight seeing, a few to support Tiger Woods, many come to find opportunity to get new jobs with international organizations, and some come here to really commit to the SAICM. I wish we have more of the last group. For those who have additional interests other than SAICM, you can go anywhere and do anything you like in the next few days, but do not forget to come here on Monday afternoon, to approve the high-level declaration, the overarching policy strategies, the plan of actions, and the resolutions.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Have a nice day, a nice weekend and a successful meeting.