PRACTICAL INFORMATION

I-MEETING VENUE

The meeting will take place at the Ledger Plaza Maya Maya Hotel, Brazzaville – Republic of Congo at the following address:

Avenue Auxence Ickonga

BP:1178 Brazzaville

Tel: + 242 05 666 95 95 / 96 96.

Email: reservations.ledgermayamaya@laicohotels.com

II-TRANSPORT FROM AIRPORT/HOTEL

Transportation from the Maya Maya airport to the hotel ledger Maya Maya will be available to participants by a shuttle car, which will be provided by the Congolese government. The Ministry of Tourism and Environment of the Republic of Congo-Brazzaville will provide free transport for all participants on arrival from the airport to ledger hotel, and upon departure from the hotel to the airport. All participants are kindly requested to forward by March 15^th, their travel itineraries and hotel bookings to:

Mr. NIATIS-NIATY Grace

pippenniatis@gmail.com

with copy to Sharon Barasa (winnie.barasa@un.org)

Tel : 00242 050209440 / 00242 06 960 27 40:

This last phone number is also Mr. Niatis’s WhatsApp number Participants are encouraged to communicate or re confirm their airline flight number with Mr. Niatis on WhatsApp when they are boarding the plane at the beginning of their journey.

III- VISA ARRANGEMENTS

All participants are required to possess a valid passport not less than 6 months. Participants should have received invitation letters to enable them to process the necessary travel documents. Participants are advised to make their own arrangements to obtain appropriate entry visas to the Republic of Congo from a Republic of Congo diplomatic or consular mission at their point of origin. For those participants who do not have access to a Republic of Congo diplomatic or consular mission, a letter to facilitate visa upon arrival will be arranged by the organizers. To obtain visa upon arrival, participants need to email a copy of their passport and their travel plan by 5^th March 2018 to: Dianna Kopansky (dianna.kopansky@unep.org).

IV-MEDIA REGISTRATION

An online registration system is being set up and will be operational soon.

V-REGISTRATION OF DELEGATES

Registration will be done at the opening of the meeting on Wednesday March 21^st.

VI-WORKING LANGUAGES OF THE MEETING

The meeting proceedings will be held in French and English languages with simultaneous translation provided on the 21^st and 22^nd March. The Global Peatlands Initiative partners closed meeting on 23^rd March will be held in English.

VII-BLOCK BOOKING FOR HOTEL ACCOMMODATION

Standard room hotel accommodation have been block booked by the organizers for 40 participants at the Hotel Ledger – Brazzaville. To make a reservation, please send a request with the following subject: “Peatlands Meeting”, or, “Reunion Tourbières” with your names, arrival and departure dates to the following email address:

VIII-ACCOMMODATION

Below is a list of recommended accommodation options close to the meeting venue that participants may choose to stay at:

LEDGER MAYAMAYA

Adresse: Av.Maréchal Lyautey (Centre-ville) Email: reservation.ledger.mayamaya@laicohotels.com Tel: 00242 05 666 95 95

Price / Day (breakfast included) 115.000 FCFA PDJ inclus. Standard

PEFACO MAYA-MAYA

Adresse: Av. Denis SASSOU NGUESSO Site: www.pefacohotel.com Tel: 00242 05 604 80 28

Price / Day (breakfast included) Standard room: 105.000 Frs CFA

RADISSON

Adresse: Av. Felix EBOUE (Chambre de Commerce) reservation.brazzaville@radissonblu.com Tel: 00242 05 050 60 60

Price / Day (breakfast included): Standard room:170.000FCFA

RIVIERA HOTEL

riviera-business-hotel-12398-c114635250aa91e6db9a230c8acf1abe16e7a32f

105 Av. GALIENI ( Mpila) rivierahotelbrazza@gmail.com 00242068852424

Price / Day (breakfast included) Standard : 50.000 Frs CFA Suite Junior : 70.000 Frs CFA Breakfast, WIFI connection, pool access included

PLATINIUM HOTEL (1)

Avenue de l’amitié Not far from the C.H.U of Brazzaville Platiniumhotel.cg@gmail.com Tel: 00 242 05 311 11 13

WIFI connection, Breakfast included

ROYAL HOTEL

31 Avenue de l’amitié not far from the C.H.U of Brazzaville Tel: 00 242 06 638 96 10

Price / Day (breakfast included) luxe : 50.000 Fcfa

ETOILE HOTEL

hotel-etoile-13253-2dc389fbf448959104dd10e2cce96b11704fbe36

162 Avenue de l’amitié not far from the C.H.U of Brazzaville

Hoteletoile06@gmail.com Tel: 00 242 06 663 15 15

Price / Day (breakfast included) Standard: 60.000 Fcfa luxe : 90.000 Fcfa Suite : 150.000 Fcfa

PLATINIUM PALACE (2)

Avenue de l’amitié not far from the C.H.U of Brazzaville

Platiniumhotel.cg@gmail.com Tel: 00 242 05 777 07 77

Price / Day (breakfast, WiFi connection included)

Léon Hôtel

Adresse:7,rue Colonel BISSET (Centreville) Email:contact@léon-hôtel-brazzaville.com Tel:00242 06 666 65 82

Standard : 75.000 FCFA Breakfast, WIFI connection and access to the pool included

OLYMPIC PALACE

Adresse:Av.de l’amitié Centre-ville Email:reception@olympic-palace-hotel.net Tel:00242 05 730 16 16

Tarifs/Jour Standard :125.000 FCFA Suite Prestigieuse : 200.00 FCFA breakfast :10.000 FCFA Pool Fitness Room with sauna for free to hotel guests.

IX-GEOGRAPHY

The Republic of the Congo (RoC) is located in the western part of Central Africa. Situated on the Equator, it is bordered by the Angola exclave of Cabinda to the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the south and east, the Central African Republic and Cameroon to the north and Gabon to the west. The RoC has a 169 km long Atlantic coast with several important ports. The capital of the RoC is Brazzaville, located on the Congo river immediately across from Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. With a metropolitan population of approximately 1.5 million, Brazzaville is by far the largest city in the Republic, having almost twice the population of Pointe-Noire (663,400 as of the 2005 census), the country’s second largest city. About 70% of the population lives in Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, or along the railroad between them.

X-TIME ZONE

Republic of Congo is GMT + 0100 hours.

XI-VACCINATIONS AND HEALTH CERTIFICATES

A yellow fever vaccination certificate is mandatory for travelers over one year of age coming from countries where yellow fever may occur. Angola, Benin, Bolivia, Brazil, Cameroon, Colombia, Ecuador, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Peru Sierra Leone and Sudan have been indicated as countries where yellow fever may occur, but no guarantees can be given that no certificates are required from other countries.

XII-WEATHER

The temperature in Brazzaville in March ranges between lows of 22^oC and highs of 32^oC. https://www.accuweather.com/en/cg/brazzaville/111167/march-weather/111167.

XIII-ELECTRICITY

The standard voltage In Congo-Brazzaville is 220 V

XIV-INTERNET ACCESS AND COMMUNICATION

Participants will have at their disposal a WIFI connection available during the meeting at the l. However, you may purchase local sim cards (MTN, or Airtel) at arrival at Maya Maya airport in Brazzaville.

XV-OFFICIAL LANGUAGE

The official language of the Republic of Congo is French.

XVI-CURRENCY

The official currency of the Republic of Congo is the Central African CFA franc. The current exchange rate vis-à-vis the US dollar is approximately 1US$ = CFA 529.335 as of February 9th (see Oanda currency converter). There is fix exchange rate between CFA and Euro. 1 Euro = CFA 655.957. The following banks are found in Brazzaville :

– ECOBANK*

– BCI

– BGFI

– UBA

– SOCIETE GENERALE

– CREDIT DU CONGO

* ATM are present in the hall of the Maya Maya Brazzaville Airport.

XVII-CREDIT CARDS

Major credit cards are accepted in most hotels and restaurants in the city.

XVIII-INSURANCE

Although we hope you may not need it, participants are encouraged to make their own arrangements to secure personal health insurance cover and insurance against accidents if so desired.

XIX-HEURE D’OUVERTURE DES SERVICES

Les banques sont ouvertes de 8h30 à 16h00 Les magasins sont ouverts de 7h00 à 21h30 La fonction publique est ouverte de 7h00 à 14h 00

XX-USEFUL TELEPHONE NUMBERS

Hospital: 112

Police: 117

Firefighter: 118

XXI- INFORMATION SUR LE SITE WEB

For more information on the Global Initiative on Peatlands in the Republic of Congo-Brazzaville, please consult the website of the Ministry of Tourism and the Environment