The following bodies are provided for in the Agreement to promote its implementation:

The Meeting of Parties (MOP):
The MOP is the decision-making body of ASCOBANS. It meets triennially to review progress made and difficulties encountered in the implementation of the Agreement and to lay down the priorities for the next triennium. non-Party Range States and regional economic organisations bordering on the Agreement Area, as well as a number of other relevant Organisations are entitled to send observers to the MOP; other bodies qualified in cetacean conservation and management may apply for observer status.

Five Meetings of Parties have taken place to date:

• MOP 1, Stockholm, Sweden, 26-28 September 1994
• MOP 2, Bonn, Germany, 17-19 November 1997
• MOP 3, Bristol, United Kingdom, 26-28 July 2000
• MOP 4, Esbjerg, Denmark, 19-22 August 2003
• MOP 5, Egmond aan Zee, 18-22 September & The Hague, Netherlands, 12 December 2006
• MOP 6, UN Campus Bonn, Germany, 16-18 September 2009

The Advisory Committee (AC)
The AC, which meets at least annually, provides advice and information to the Secretariat and the Parties on the conservation and management of small cetaceans and on other matters related to the running of the Agreement. Each Party is entitled to appoint one member to the AC, who may be accompanied by advisors. Concerning the participation of non-Party Range States, Regional Economic Integration Organisations and other relevant bodies, similar rules to those governing the MOP apply.

To date, 15 Meetings of the Advisory Committee have taken place:

• AC 1: Cambridge, United Kingdom, 8-10 March 1995
• AC 2: Cambridge, UK, 29 November - 1 December 1995
• AC 3: Copenhagen, Denmark, 13-15 November 1996
• AC 4: Texel, Netherlands, 30 June - 2 July 1997
• AC 5: Hel, Poland, 22-24 April 1998
• AC 6: Aberdeen, UK, 12-14 April 1999
• AC 7: Bruges, Belgium, 13-16 March 2000
• AC 8: Nymindegab, Denmark, 2-5 April 2001
• AC 9: Hindĺs, Sweden, 10-12 June 2002
• AC 10: Bonn, Germany, 9-11 April 2003
• AC 11: Jastrzebia Góra, Poland, 27-29 April 2004
• AC 12: Brest, France, 12-14 April 2005
• AC 13: Tampere, Finland, 25-27 April 2006
• AC 14: San Sebastián, Spain, 19-21 April 2007
• AC 15, UN Campus, Bonn, Germany, 31 March - 3 April 2008
• AC 16, Brugge, Belgium, 20-24 April 2009

The Secretariat
The ASCOBANS Secretariat, located in Bonn, acts as the coordinating body of the Agreement. It gathers and disseminates information to the MOP and the AC. It plays an important role in awareness-raising and provides advice and support to the Parties, assisting them in the implementation of the agreement. It services the sessions of the Meeting of the Parties and meetings of the Advisory Committee. The ASCOBANS Secretariat along with other Regional Agreement Secretariats (AEWA and EUROBATS) within the framework of the Bonn Convention is integrated into the Agreements Unit of the CMS Secretariat. The 5th Meeting of the Parties of ASCOBANS (2006) decided that from 1 January 2007 the UNEP/CMS Secretariat would serve as the Secretariat for the ASCOBANS Agreement; and the Executive Secretary of UNEP/CMS would be the acting Executive Secretary of ASCOBANS for a provisional three-year period. This arrangement was confirmed for a further triennium, i.e. until the end of 2012, by the 6th Meeting of the Parties (2009).

The Secretariat team now consists of the Acting Executive Secretary Ms Elizabeth Maruma Mrema (3% of her time are dedicated to ASCOBANS), the ASCOBANS Senior Advisor Mr Borja Heredia (CMS Scientific and Technical Officer (15%)), the Associate Coordination Officer Ms Heidrun Frisch (75%) and the Administrative Assistant Ms Bettina Reinartz (50% part-time position). The team also often enjoys the support of an intern.

Any vacancies of the ASCOBANS Secretariat are posted, together with those of the other Secretariats of the CMS Family of Agreements, on the CMS website.


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