(Communicated by the Foreign Ministry Spokesman)

A Memorandum of Cooperation was signed today 17 January 2007 in Nairobi between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Israel and the United Nations Environment Programme on the Implementation of the Bali Strategic Plan for Technology Support and Capacity Building.

The Memorandum of Cooperation is aimed at strengthening the capacity of governments of developing countries as well as countries with economies in transition in the field of environment in accordance with the Millennium Development Goals and the Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development.

Israel, represented by MASHAV, the Center for International Cooperation in Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in partnership with UNEP will focus on providing expertise and technical know-how through joint capacity building programs on environmental-related topics, including management of water resources, water scarcity, sanitation, waste management, food security and agriculture, management of dry lands, desertification and land degradation.

The Memorandum of Cooperation reflects the importance Israel places on donor coordination with UN organizations in dealing with environmental development issues of high priority on the global agenda, while acknowledging Israel's rich and varied expertise. The Memorandum likewise affirms Israel's commitment to the Bali Strategy Plan.

Israel's commitment to strengthening development cooperation with the United Nations was realized in an international conference on desertification recently held in Israel under the auspices of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in collaboration with the Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.