In the first informal meeting of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) on establishing the High-level Political Forum on sustainable development (HLPF), Members States and Permanent Observers convened to discuss its format and organizational aspects.
The consultation took place on 30 January 2013, at UN Headquarters in New York, US, convened by the two co-facilitators for the process, Cesare Maria Ragaglini, Permanent Representative of Italy, and Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti, Permanent Representative of Brazil. The consultation followed from the decision at the June 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20) "to establish a universal, intergovernmental, high-level political forum, building on the strengths, experiences, resources and inclusive participation modalities of the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD), and subsequently replacing the Commission."
Noting that the HLPF was one of the key outcomes of Rio+20, Ragaglini said the meeting should allow delegates to express their initial views on modalities and format of the HLPF. He requested, inter alia, conducting the negotiations in an inclusive and transparent manner and avoiding reopening agreements reached in Rio. He said that Major Groups will be engaged in the process and negotiations should be concluded by May 2013, in order for the HLPF to start at the beginning of the 68th session of the UNGA.
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