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The GEF CEO and Representatives of the 16 countries of West Africa and Chad, including twelve ministers met in Cotonou on February 18-19, 2010.
The objectives of the meeting were to take stock of the GEF 4 programs on Energy and Biodiversity they had endorsed two years earlier in Cotonou, discuss the implications for their countries of proposed reforms for GEF 5 and explore opportunities for potential GEF-5 Programs.
Executive Coordinators of GEF Agencies involved in project implementation in the region participated in the discussions. The session was also attended by representatives of the EU, bilateral partners and civil society organizations. A two-day technical workshop preceded the ministerial consultation.
The ministerial declaration summarizes the outcome of the deliberations in which, among other things, they took note of progress in the GEF-5 replenishment process, commended the various reform ideas under discussion, and embraced once again the programmatic approach for leveraging more GEF investments in GEF-5.