The IOMC organisations: a source of chemical safety information

The Inter-Organisation Programme for the Sound Management of Chemicals (IOM C) was established in 1995 as a mechanism to co-ordinate the efforts of Int er-governmental Organisations in promoting the sound management of chemical s. The seven participating organisations are the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the World Health Organisat ion (WHO), the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR). and the Or ganisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Members consult on the planning, programming, implementation and monitoring of activities u ndertaken jointly or individually. and help ensure that programmes are mutu ally supportive. complementary and avoid duplication of efforts, thus meeti ng the overall needs of the users more efficiently and effectively. To deal with technical work, the IOMC established smaller thematic groups in the m ain programme areas of Agenda 21's Chapter 19. One such group promotes info rmation exchange work. Within this IOMC framework, the seven organisations have developed approaches and products to help customers find chemical safe ty information, as well as improving modalities of access to these data. Th ese mechanisms come in addition to acid complement the extensive informatio n products and databases developed and provided by the individual organisat ions. This article presents an overview of the role of each organisation, a n introduction to its: electronic information products: and tools, and a di scussion of the products of this joint effort. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ir eland Ltd. All rights: reserved.