3rd CND intersessional meeting 2020

The 3rd CND intersessional meeting for the 63rd session will be held from 19th October to 21st October at the Vienna International Centre, Board Room C. The meetings will be held starting at 10:30 a.m. and at 3:00 p.m. In light of social distancing requirements as well as possible restrictions on in-person participation at the time of the meeting, the thematic sessions will be held as a virtual or blended (virtual and limited in-person participation) meeting.

Interpretation will not be available during the meetings. The meeting will be webcast.

As per the workplan agreed upon on 24th June 2019, thematic discussions will take place every autumn during the period between 2019-22, addressing the challenges identified by the taking stock paragraph of the 2019 Ministerial Declaration.

Accordingly, on 16-18 october, the Commission on Narcotic Drugs will meet to discuss the following three elements of the 2019 Ministerial Declaration’s “Taking Stock” paragraph:

a. Thematic session 1: Drug treatment and health services continue to fall short of meeting needs and deaths related to drug use have increased; and the rate of transmission of HIV, the hepatitis C virus and other blood-borne diseases associated with drug use, including injecting drug use in some countries, remains high (19 October 2020)

b. Thematic session 2: The adverse health consequences of and risks associated with new psychoactive substances have reached alarming levels (20 October 2020)

c. Thematic session 3: The availability of internationally controlled substances for medical and scientific purposes, including for the relief of pain and palliative care, remains low to non-existent in many parts of the world (21 October 2020).

Civil society participation

For each thematic segment up to 5 NGOs will have the possibility to present their work and positioning. In order to ensure an inclusive, comprehensive and meaningful civil society participation, NGOs will work through the Vienna NGO Committee on Drugs (VNGOC) which has been requested to coordinate contributions.

Each speaker will have 3-5 minutes to present his or her work on the thematic focus of the day.

Selected speakers will be asked to send in their statements or videos (including. Transcripts) no later than 12 OCTOBER 2020. Interpretation will not be available during the meetings and all abstracts and statements have to be submitted in English.

In order to apply for a speaking slot, please fill out the google form by 25 SEPTEMBER 2020 at 11:55 p.m. (CEST, Vienna local time): https://bit.ly/CfA-CND-Intersessionals-2020
The VNGOC will follow the guidelines established by the Civil Society Task Force (CSTF) in 2018: http://vngoc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/CSTF-Speaker-Selection-Guidelines-final-formatted.pdf

Selected candidates will be notified as soon as possible but no later than 30 SEPTEMBER 2020.

In light of social distancing requirements as well as possible restrictions on in-person participation at the time of the meeting, the thematic sessions will be held as a virtual or blended (virtual and limited in-person participation) meeting. We will keep you updated on any new information on the meeting logistics.