UNCTAD will co-host the 2006 Annual General Meeting of the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development.

The Forum is an initiative flowing from the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg, South Africa. Governments of Canada and South Africa provided the leadership in launching the Forum, which was established in February 2005, to:

• enhance and promote the contribution of the mining, minerals and metals sector to sustainable development; and
  
  
• provide governments with a framework in which to discuss the opportunities and challenges provided by this sector.

This inaugural meeting has been welcomed by Kofi Annan who noted that "The establishment of the Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals and Sustainable Development is a significant step towards maximizing the contribution of the mineral sector to sustainable development".