The Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA), at its twelfth session, welcomed the information provided by the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) secretariat in response to the invitation contained in decision 5/CP.5 to consider the need for an intergovernmental process for global observing systems. It noted the efforts already made to organize regional workshops to identify priority capacity-building needs of developing countries. The SBSTA invited the GCOS secretariat to report periodically on its activities related to decision 5/CP.5, as well as on developments in the global observing systems for climate at its further sessions (FCCC/SBSTA/2000/5, para.59). The GCOS secretariat submitted a report in response to the above request. In accordance with the procedure for miscellaneous documents, this submission is attached and reproduced in the language in which it was received and without formal editing