Article 38 Amendments to this protocol

Any Party may propose amendments to this Protocol.

Amendments to this Protocol shall be considered and adopted by the Meeting of the Parties. The text of any proposed amendment to this Protocol shall be communicated to the Parties by the Convention Secretariat at least six months before the session at which it is proposed for adoption. The Convention Secretariat shall also communicate proposed amendments to the signatories of this Protocol and, for information, to the Depositary.

The Parties shall make every effort to reach agreement by consensus on any proposed amendment to this Protocol. If all efforts at consensus have been exhausted and no agreement reached, the amendment shall as a last resort be adopted by a three-quarters majority vote of the Parties present and voting at the session. For purposes of this Article, ‘Parties present and voting’ means Parties present and casting an affirmative or negative vote. Any adopted amendment shall be communicated by the Convention Secretariat to the Depositary, who shall circulate it to all Parties for acceptance.

Instruments of acceptance in respect of an amendment shall be deposited with the Depositary. An amendment adopted in accordance with paragraph 3 shall enter into force for those Parties having accepted it on the ninetieth day after the date of receipt by the Depositary of an instrument of acceptance by at least two thirds of the Parties.

The amendment shall enter into force for any other Party on the ninetieth day after the date on which that Party deposits with the Depositary its instrument of acceptance of the said amendment.