The Preparatory Commission for the BBNJ Agreement concluded its third and final session at United Nations Headquarters on 2 April 2026, under the co-chairship of Ambassador Janine Coye-Felson of Belize and Mr. Adam McCarthy of Australia.
Delegations advanced work on the subsidiary bodies, financial arrangements, the process for establishing the Agreement’s Secretariat and the Clearing-House Mechanism, and heard presentations from the three candidates to host the Secretariat — Belgium, Chile and China. The Commission’s work will be transmitted to the first Conference of the Parties, expected in January 2027; intersessional work continues until the conclusion of COP1.