87th Meeting of the Bureau of the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention and its Protocols, Athens, Greece, 6–7 November 2018.

The 87th Meeting of the Bureau of the Contracting Parties to the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment and the Coastal Region of the Mediterranean (Barcelona Convention) and its Protocols was held on 6 – 7 November 2018. The Bureau discussed the Progress Report for the period April - September 2018, the Report by the Secretariat on Financial and Administrative Issues, as well as a number of Specific Issues, in particular: a) the Status of Ratification of the Barcelona Convention and its Protocols, b) the Development of Host Country Agreements for Regional Activity Centres, c) the Meeting of Thematic Focal Points for Specially Protected Areas/Biodiversity, d) Compliance and Reporting, e) Cooperation and Partners, f) the Preparation of Assessment Reports, g) Outreach, Information and Communication, and h) Preparations for COP 21 of the Barcelona Convention and its Protocols. The meeting adopted a set of conclusions and recommendations, prepared in accordance with the Terms of Reference of the Bureau, included in the Report of the Meeting (document UNEP/MED BUR.87/7).