CHAPTER XXVII

ENVIRONMENT14Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International TradeRotterdam, 10 September 1998Entry into force24 February 2004 in accordance with article 26 which reads as follows: "1. The Convention shall enter into force on the ninetieth day after the date of deposit of the fiftieth instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession. 2. For each State or regional economic integration organization that ratifies, accepts or approves this Convention or accedes thereto after the deposit of the fiftieth instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, the Convention shall enter into force on the ninetieth day after the date of deposit by such State or regional economic integration organization of its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession. 3. For the purpose of paragraphs 1 and 2, any instrument deposited by a regional economic integration organization shall not be counted as additional to those deposited by member States of that organization.".Registration24 February 2004, No. 39973StatusSignatories72Parties1661TextUnited Nations, <i>Treaty Series </i>, vol. 2244, p. 337; C.N.846.2002.TREATIES-8 of 20 August 2002 (proposal of corrections to the original English text of the Convention); C.N.1029.2002.TREATIES-18 of 23 September 2002 (correction to the original English text of the Convention); C.N.10.2005.TREATIES-1 of 11 January 2005 (Adoption of Annex VI); C.N.11.2005.TREATIES-2 of 11 January 2005 (Amendments to Annex III); C.N.83.2009.TREATIES-1 of 5 February 2009 (Amendment to Annex III); C.N.139.2012.TREATIES-XXVII.14 of 8 March 2012 (Adoption of Amendment to Annex III); C.N.973.2013.TREATIES-XXVII.14 of 6 December 2013 (Amendments to Annex III); C.N.696.2015.TREATIES-XXVII.14 of 21 December 2015 (Amendment to Annex III); C.N.489.2017.TREATIES-XXVII.14 of 24 August 2017 (Amendments to Annex III); C.N.397.2019.TREATIES-XXVII.14 of 28 August 2019 (Amendments to Annex III); C.N.574.2019.TREATIES-XXVII.14 of 8 November 2019 (Adoption of Annex VII), C.N.187.2020.TREATIES-XXVII-14 of 8 June 2020 (Iran: Notification under article 22 (3) (b)), C.N.440.2020.TREATIES-XXVII-14 of 12 October 2020 (Syrian Arab Republic: Notification under article 22 (3) (b)), C.N.515.2020.TREATIES-XXVII-14 of 4 November 2020 (Russian Federation: Notification under article 22 (3) (b)) and C.N.521.2020.TREATIES-XXVII-14 of 6 November 2020 (China: Notification under article 22 (3) (b)), and C.N.530.2020.TREATIES-XXVII.14 of 16 November 2020 (Entry into force of Annex VII); C.N.315.2022.TREATIES-XXVII.14 of 28 September 2022 (Amendments to Annex III); C.N.281.2023.TREATIES-XXVII.14 of 14 September 2023 (Amendment to Annex III).<superscript>2</superscript><superscript>3</superscript><superscript>4</superscript><superscript>5</superscript>The Convention was adopted on 10 September 1998 by the Conference of Plenipotentiaries on the Convention in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. In accordance with its article 24, the Convention will be open for signature at Rotterdam by all States and regional economic integration organizations on 11 September 1998, and subsequently at United Nations Headquarters in New York from 12 September 1998 to 10 September 1999.

ParticipantSignatureRatification, Acceptance(A), Approval(AA), Accession(a)Afghanistan 6 Mar 2013 aAlbania 9 Aug 2010 aAlgeria21 Jul 2020 aAngola11 Sep 1998 Antigua and Barbuda23 Aug 2010 aArgentina11 Sep 1998 11 Jun 2004 Armenia11 Sep 1998 26 Nov 2003 Australia 6 Jul 1999 20 May 2004 Austria11 Sep 1998 27 Aug 2002 Bahrain16 Apr 2012 aBarbados11 Sep 1998 8 Oct 2020 Belarus11 Mar 2024 aBelgium11 Sep 1998 23 Oct 2002 Belize20 Apr 2005 aBenin11 Sep 1998 5 Jan 2004 Bolivia (Plurinational State of)18 Dec 2003 aBosnia and Herzegovina19 Mar 2007 aBotswana 5 Feb 2008 aBrazil11 Sep 1998 16 Jun 2004 Bulgaria25 Jul 2000 aBurkina Faso11 Sep 1998 11 Nov 2002 Burundi23 Sep 2004 aCabo Verde 1 Mar 2006 aCambodia 1 Mar 2013 aCameroon11 Sep 1998 20 May 2002 Canada26 Aug 2002 aChad11 Sep 1998 10 Mar 2004 Chile11 Sep 1998 20 Jan 2005 China<superscript>6,7</superscript>24 Aug 1999 22 Mar 2005 Colombia11 Sep 1998 3 Dec 2008 Congo11 Sep 1998 13 Jul 2006 Cook Islands29 Jun 2004 aCosta Rica17 Aug 1999 13 Aug 2009 Côte d'Ivoire11 Sep 1998 20 Jan 2004 Croatia16 Nov 2007 aCuba11 Sep 1998 22 Feb 2008 Cyprus11 Sep 1998 17 Dec 2004 Czech Republic22 Jun 1999 12 Jun 2000 Democratic People's Republic of Korea 6 Feb 2004 aDemocratic Republic of the Congo23 Mar 2005 Denmark<superscript>8</superscript>11 Sep 1998 15 Jan 2004 Djibouti10 Nov 2004 aDominica30 Dec 2005 aDominican Republic24 Mar 2006 aEcuador11 Sep 1998 4 May 2004 El Salvador16 Feb 1999 8 Sep 1999 Equatorial Guinea 7 Feb 2003 aEritrea10 Mar 2005 aEstonia13 Jun 2006 aEswatini24 Sep 2012 aEthiopia 9 Jan 2003 aEuropean Union11 Sep 1998 20 Dec 2002 AAFinland11 Sep 1998 4 Jun 2004 AFrance11 Sep 1998 17 Feb 2004 AAGabon18 Dec 2003 aGambia26 Feb 2002 aGeorgia27 Feb 2007 aGermany11 Sep 1998 11 Jan 2001 Ghana11 Sep 1998 30 May 2003 Greece11 Sep 1998 23 Dec 2003 Grenada15 Oct 2021 aGuatemala19 Apr 2010 aGuinea 7 Sep 2000 aGuinea-Bissau10 Sep 1999 12 Jun 2008 Guyana25 Jun 2007 aHonduras26 Sep 2011 aHungary10 Sep 1999 31 Oct 2000 India24 May 2005 aIndonesia11 Sep 1998 24 Sep 2013 Iran (Islamic Republic of)17 Feb 1999 26 Aug 2004 Iraq18 Apr 2017 aIreland10 Jun 2005 aIsrael20 May 1999 3 Oct 2011 Italy11 Sep 1998 27 Aug 2002 Jamaica20 Aug 2002 aJapan31 Aug 1999 15 Jun 2004 AJordan22 Jul 2002 aKazakhstan 1 Nov 2007 aKenya11 Sep 1998 3 Feb 2005 Kuwait11 Sep 1998 12 May 2006 Kyrgyzstan11 Aug 1999 25 May 2000 Lao People's Democratic Republic21 Sep 2010 aLatvia23 Apr 2003 aLebanon13 Nov 2006 aLesotho30 May 2008 aLiberia22 Sep 2004 aLibya 9 Jul 2002 aLiechtenstein18 Jun 2004 aLithuania17 Mar 2004 aLuxembourg11 Sep 1998 28 Aug 2002 Madagascar 8 Dec 1998 22 Sep 2004 Malawi27 Feb 2009 aMalaysia 4 Sep 2002 aMaldives17 Oct 2006 aMali11 Sep 1998 5 Jun 2003 Malta17 Jan 2017 aMarshall Islands27 Jan 2003 aMauritania 1 Sep 1999 22 Jul 2005 AMauritius 5 Aug 2005 aMexico 4 May 2005 aMongolia11 Sep 1998 8 Mar 2001 Montenegro30 Dec 2011 aMorocco25 Apr 2011 aMozambique15 Apr 2010 aNamibia11 Sep 1998 24 Jun 2005 Nepal 9 Feb 2007 aNetherlands (Kingdom of the)<superscript>9</superscript>11 Sep 1998 20 Apr 2000 ANew Zealand<superscript>10</superscript>11 Sep 1998 23 Sep 2003 Nicaragua19 Sep 2008 aNiger16 Feb 2006 aNigeria28 Jun 2001 aNorth Macedonia12 Aug 2010 aNorway11 Sep 1998 25 Oct 2001 AOman31 Jan 2000 aPakistan 9 Sep 1999 14 Jul 2005 Panama11 Sep 1998 18 Aug 2000 Paraguay11 Sep 1998 18 Aug 2003 Peru11 Sep 1998 14 Sep 2005 Philippines11 Sep 1998 31 Jul 2006 Poland14 Sep 2005 aPortugal11 Sep 1998 16 Feb 2005 AAQatar10 Dec 2004 aRepublic of Korea 7 Sep 1999 11 Aug 2003 Republic of Moldova27 Jan 2005 aRomania 2 Sep 2003 aRussian Federation28 Apr 2011 aRwanda 7 Jan 2004 aSamoa30 May 2002 aSao Tome and Principe23 May 2013 aSaudi Arabia 7 Sep 2000 aSenegal11 Sep 1998 20 Jul 2001 Serbia31 Jul 2009 aSeychelles11 Sep 1998 Sierra Leone 1 Nov 2016 aSingapore24 May 2005 aSlovakia26 Jan 2007 aSlovenia11 Sep 1998 17 Nov 1999 Somalia26 Jul 2010 aSouth Africa 4 Sep 2002 aSpain11 Sep 1998 2 Mar 2004 Sri Lanka19 Jan 2006 aSt. Kitts and Nevis14 Aug 2012 aSt. Lucia25 Jan 1999 St. Vincent and the Grenadines29 Oct 2010 aState of Palestine29 Dec 2017 aSudan17 Feb 2005 aSuriname30 May 2000 aSweden11 Sep 1998 10 Oct 2003 Switzerland11 Sep 1998 10 Jan 2002 Syrian Arab Republic11 Sep 1998 24 Sep 2003 Tajikistan28 Sep 1998 Thailand19 Feb 2002 aTogo 9 Sep 1999 23 Jun 2004 Tonga31 Mar 2010 aTrinidad and Tobago16 Dec 2009 aTunisia11 Sep 1998 9 Feb 2016 Türkiye11 Sep 1998 21 Sep 2017 Tuvalu21 Aug 2020 aUganda18 Aug 2008 aUkraine 6 Dec 2002 aUnited Arab Emirates10 Sep 2002 aUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland11 Sep 1998 17 Jun 2004 United Republic of Tanzania11 Sep 1998 26 Aug 2002 United States of America11 Sep 1998 Uruguay11 Sep 1998 4 Mar 2003 Vanuatu16 Oct 2018 aVenezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)19 Apr 2005 aViet Nam 7 May 2007 aYemen 4 Feb 2006 aZambia28 Jan 2011 aZimbabwe 1 Mar 2012 aAustriaDeclaration:"The Republic of Austria declares in accordance with Article 20 (2) of the Convention that it accepts both of the means of dispute settlement mentioned in Paragraph 2 as compulsory in relation to any party accepting an obligation concerning one or both of these means of dispute."BotswanaDeclaration:"[Pursuant to] paragraph 2 of Article 20, the Government of the Republic of Botswana declares that, with respect to any dispute concerning the interpretation or application of the Convention, it recognises both means of dispute settlement set out in thisprovision, as compulsory in relation to any Party accepting the same obligation under the Convention. This Declaration shall remain valid for the period that the Government of the Republic of Botswana is a party to the Convention.”EstoniaDeclaration:“With respect to any dispute concerning the interpretation or application of this Convention, the Republic of Estonia recognizes both of the means of dispute settlement stated in Article 20, paragraph 2 as compulsory in relation to any Party accepting the same obligation.”European UnionDeclaration:"The European Community declares that, in accordance with the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 175(l) thereof, it is competent to enter into international agreements, and to implement the obligations resulting therefrom, which contribute to the pursuit of the following objectives:Preserving, Protecting and improving the quality of the environment;protecting human health;prudent and rational utilisation of natural resources;promoting measures at international level to deal with regional or worldwide environmental problems.Moreover, the European Community declares that it has already adopted legal instruments, including a Regulation of the European Parliament and the Council concerning the export and import of dangerous chemicals, binding on its Member States, covering matters governed by this Convention, and will submit and update, as appropriate, a list of those legal instruments to the Secretariat of the Convention.The European Community is responsible for the performance of those obligations resulting from the Convention which are covered by Community law in force.The exercise of Community competence is, by its nature, subject to continuous development."IsraelDeclaration:“Pursuant to article 20, paragraph 2 of the Convention, the Government of the State of Israel declares that with respect to any dispute concerning the interpretation or application of the convention, it recognizes only (a) Arbitration in accordance with procedures to be adopted by the Conference of the Parties in an annex as soon as practicable.”Declaration:“The Government of the State of Israel has noted that the instrument of ratification of the Syrian Arab Republic to the abovementioned Convention contains a declaration with respect to the State of Israel. The Government of the State of Israel considers that such a declaration, which is explicitly of a political nature, is incompatible with the purposes and objectives of the Convention.The Government of the State of Israel therefore objects to the aforesaid declaration made by the Syrian Arab Republic.”Netherlands (Kingdom of the)<right>17 February 2010</right>Declaration:“The Kingdom of the Netherlands declares, in accordance with paragraph 2 of Article 20 of the Rotterdam Convention on the prior informed consent procedure for certain hazardous chemicals and pesticides in international trade, that it accepts both means of dispute settlement referred to in that paragraph as compulsory in relation to any Party accepting one or both means of dispute settlement.”NorwayDeclaration:“In accordance with article 20 (2), [Norway declares that], with respect to any dispute concerning the interpretation or application of the Convention, it recognizes (b) Submission of the dispute to the International Court of Justice.”Republic of MoldovaDeclaration:According to article 20 of the Convention, the Republic of Moldova declares that [it] accepts both means of dispute settlement, mentioned in paragraph 2 of the article, as compulsory in relation to any Party accepting the same obligation.Syrian Arab RepublicDeclaration:The Government of the Syrian Arab Republic has reviewed the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade, which was signed in 1998. Having given it thorough consideration:It declares that it has already ratified the above-mentioned Convention by virtue of legislative decree No. 35 of 13 July 2003, and that it will fully comply with and respect all its provisions, while confirming that the ratification of this Convention by the Syrian Arab Republic does not in any way constitute a recognition of Israel, and that the provisions of the Convention do not imply that the Syrian Arab Republic has to deal with that State.Israel<right>13 January 2004</right>With regard to the declaration made by the Syrian Arab Republic upon ratification :"The Government of the State of Israel has noted that the instrument of ratification of the Syrian Arab Republic to the abovementioned Convention contains a declaration with respect to the State of Israel. The Government of the State of Israel considers that such declaration, which is explicitly of a political nature, is incompatible with the purposes and objectives of the Convention.The Government of the State of Israel therefore objects to the aforesaid declaration made by the Syrian Arab Republic."1For the purpose of entry into force of the [Convention/Protocol] , any instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession deposited by a regional economic integration organization shall not be counted as additional to those deposited by member States of that Organization.2By decision RC-1/3 of 24 September 2004, adopted at its first meeting, held in Geneva from 20 to 24 September 2004, the Conference of the Parties to the above Convention adopted, in accordance with the procedure laid down in article 8 and paragraph 5 of article 22 of the Convention, the amendments to Annex III. In accordance with paragraph 5 (c) of article 22 of the Convention, the Conference of the Parties, in the same decision, decided that "all the amendments shall enter into force on 1 February 2005, except for the amendments made by subparagraph 1 (a) and (b) of the annex to the ... decision, which shall enter into force on 1 January 2006".3By decision RC-1/11 of 24 September 2004, adopted at its first meeting, held in Geneva from 20 to 24 September 2004, the Conference of the Parties to the above Convention adopted Annex VI, setting out the arbitration procedure for purposes of paragraph 2 (a) of article 20 of the Convention and the conciliation procedure for purposes of paragraph 6 of article 20 of the Convention.In accordance with paragraph 3 (b) of article 22 of the Convention, any Party that is unable to accept an additional annex shall so notify the Depositary, in writing, within one year from the date of communication of the adoption of the additional annex by the Depositary. The Depositary shall without delay notify all Parties of any such notification received. A Party may at any time withdraw a previous notification of non-acceptance in respect of an additional annex and the annex shall thereupon enter into force for that Party subject to paragraph 3 (c) of the same article. In accordance with paragraph 3 (c), on the expiry of one year from the date of the communication by the Depositary of its adoption, Annex VI shall enter into force for all Parties that have not submitted a notification in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 3 (b).4By decision RC-4/5 of 31 October 2008, adopted at its fourth meeting, held in Rome, Italy, from 27 to 31 October 2008, the Conference of the Parties to the above Convention adopted, in accordance with the procedure laid down in paragraph 5 of article 22 of the Convention, an amendments to Annex III. In accordance with paragraph 5 (c) of article 22 of the Convention, the Conference of the Parties, in the same decision, decided that "this amendment shall enter into force for all Parties on 1 February 2009".5By decisions RC-5/3, RC-5/4 and RC-5/5, adopted at its fifth meeting, held in Geneva from 20-24 June 2011, the Conference of the Parties to the above Convention adopted, in accordance with the procedure laid down in paragraph 5 of article 22 of the Convention, amendments to Annex III. In accordance with paragraph 5 (c) article 22 of the Convention, the Conference of the Parties, in the same decision decided that these amendments entered into force for all Parties on 24 October 2011.6With the following declaration:In accordance with the provision of article 138 of the Basic Law of the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China and article 153 of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China, the Government of the People’s Republic of China decides that the Convention shall apply to the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China; it shall not apply to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China until the Government of China notifies otherwise.7On 26 August 2008, the Government of the People's Republic of China communicated to the Secretary-General the following declaration: In accordance with the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China, the Government of the People’s Republic of China decides that the Convention shall apply to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.8With a territorial exclusion in respect of the Faroe Islands and Greenland.9For the Kingdom in Europe.10With the following territorial exclusion: ".....consistent with the constitutional status of Tokelau and taking into account the commitment of the Government of New Zealand to the development of self-government for Tokelau through an act of self-determination under the Charter of the United Nations, this ratification shall not extend to Tokelau unless and until a Declaration to this effect is lodged by the Government of New Zealand with the Depositary on the basis of appropriate consultation with that territory."