Strengthening national capacities of nine Asia-Pacific countries to address plastic pollution by developing, updating, monitoring and reporting on National Action Plans, in the context of the negotiation for a global agreement
Reference
PDF-SDG-2022-05
Implementing Entity/ies
UNEP
Collaborating Partners
UNDP, ESCAP, RCOs, UNCTs, national governments
Duration
May 2023 ¨C April 2026
Location
Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao People¡¯s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Philippines, Samoa, Thailand, Viet Nam
Approved Budget
$ 1,478,599
Description
Plastic pollution is one of the most pressing and visible environmental issues and is part of the triple planetary crisis of climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution. Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic is setting back progress on reducing pollution, as the consumption of single-use plastic products for hygiene, food and health has increased drastically, resulting in fast-growing plastic waste with poor waste management. Eight of the world's top twenty source countries of marine plastics are from Asia, and most Asia-Pacific countries face challenges associated with poor waste management. One of the root causes is that the legislative framework, action plans, and awareness are outpaced by the growth of plastic production and consumption and its consequential impacts, while existing reporting and monitoring systems cannot bring optimal analysis on plastic pollution to support relevant policies.
In this context, this project aims to:
1) enhance the capacity of nine Asia-Pacific countries to identify existing information on the status and trends and drivers of plastic pollution, as well as information gaps in data and legislation, in order to develop and/or update, and plan to implement, monitor and report on National Action Plans to reduce plastic pollution, increase the capacity and information exchange at the regional level to align and collaborate on the development and updating of adopted National Action Plans through South-South and Triangular cooperation.
2) Providing experience, best practices and technical guidance to governments and businesses of three Asia-Pacific countries to design and implement Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme with a focus on high-impact sectors related to plastics to reduce plastic pollution. 3) Integrate the plastic agenda into national development priorities of CCAs and UNSDCFs, through enhancing the capacity of UN Regional Commissions and UN Country teams. On a longer-term perspective, the project will contribute to the reduction of plastic pollution and its associated impacts on climate, nature, and pollution in Asia-Pacific with environmental, social, and economic benefits.
In this context, this project aims to:
1) enhance the capacity of nine Asia-Pacific countries to identify existing information on the status and trends and drivers of plastic pollution, as well as information gaps in data and legislation, in order to develop and/or update, and plan to implement, monitor and report on National Action Plans to reduce plastic pollution, increase the capacity and information exchange at the regional level to align and collaborate on the development and updating of adopted National Action Plans through South-South and Triangular cooperation.
2) Providing experience, best practices and technical guidance to governments and businesses of three Asia-Pacific countries to design and implement Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme with a focus on high-impact sectors related to plastics to reduce plastic pollution. 3) Integrate the plastic agenda into national development priorities of CCAs and UNSDCFs, through enhancing the capacity of UN Regional Commissions and UN Country teams. On a longer-term perspective, the project will contribute to the reduction of plastic pollution and its associated impacts on climate, nature, and pollution in Asia-Pacific with environmental, social, and economic benefits.