The Action Plan led to the 1983 adoption of the Convention for the Protection and Development of the Marine Environment of the Wider Caribbean Region (Cartagena Convention), which provides the legal framework. The Convention has been supplemented by three protocols addressing specific environmental issues namely, oil spills, specially protected areas and wildlife and land-based sources and activities or marine pollution. The CEP provides the programmatic framework for the Cartagena Convention.

The Caribbean Regional Co-ordinating Unit (CAR/RCU) located in Kingston, Jamaica was created in 1986 and serves as Secretariat to the CEP. The CEP has three main sub-programmes:

• Assessment and Management of Environment Pollution (AMEP).
• Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife (SPAW).
• Communication, Education, Training and Awareness (CETA).

For more information on the various sub-programmes download the CEP Brochure (available in English and Spanish).

The CEP administers two GEF-funded projects:

• Reducing Pesticides Runoff to the Caribbean Sea (GEF-REPCar)
• Integrated Watershed and Coastal Area Management (IWCAM)