Summary of Decisions and Action

The First Meeting of the States Parties was held 3-7 May 1999 in Maputo, Mozambique, under the presidency of H.E. Leonardo Santos Simao, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mozambique. The Meeting was opened by H.E. Joaquim Alberto Chissano, President of Mozambique, and included a statement from H.E. Prince Zeid Raad Zeid Al-Hussein delivering a statement from Her Majesty Queen Noor of Jordan, the 1997 Nobel Laureate Jody Williams, and a message from H.E. Bill Clinton, President of the United States of America.

As was noted in the Maputo Declaration English PDF 9KB | French PDF 14KB | Spanish PDF 9KB, by holding their first annual meeting in one of the most mine affected countries in the world, the States Parties highlighted the need to focus with great determination "on the need to make the killing fields of anti-personnel mines that have terrorised, maimed and killed people, destroyed lives and hope for too long, a relic of the past."

Key outcomes of the Meeting included the following:

On the basis of a President's Paper on Intersessional Work English PDF 112KB | French PDF 11KB | Spanish PDF 8KB, the States Parties agreed to establish the Intersessional Work Programme, which would involve Standing Committees of Experts meeting between annual Meetings of the States Parties to advance the achievement of the humanitarian objectives of the Convention.

On the basis of President's Paper on Circulation of Article 7 Reports English PDF 128KB | French PDF 15KB | Spanish PDF 9KB, the States Parties agreed to the technical ways and means of circulating the transparency reports that each State Party must provide annually.

In addition, the States Parties adopted Reporting Formats for Article 7 English PDF 18KB | French PDF 29KB | Spanish PDF 9KB.

The States Parties adopted the strongly-worded Maputo Declaration English PDF 9KB | French PDF 14KB | Spanish PDF 14KB, which set the tone for all future political declarations adopted by the States Parties.