The Pacific is disproportionately affected by the global plastic pollution, contributing less than 1.3 percent but our ocean is inundated with bulk of the world’s transboundary washed away plastics which has serious negative environmental, health, cultural and socio-economic consequences.
Recognising this disproportionate burden on Pacific SIDS, the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), along with over 65 countries from small island states, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, put together a proposal for a dedicated Multilateral Fund for Plastics. The proposal was first submitted at the third session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment (INC-3) in Nairobi, Kenya last November.
In addition to a Fund providing financial support for developing countries’ implementation actions under the treaty, the proposal includes a robust capacity building and technology transfer component. This component establishes and supports national plastics officers to oversee national plastics offices that would manage treaty work for each developing country. It also envisions regional networks through which these offices and officers can coordinate with trainings, information sharing and other avenues, similar to the National Ozone Units under the Montreal Protocol.
At the present fourth session of the INC, the FSM submitted an elaborated paper on how the proposed fund would interrelate with the capacity building and technology transfer component, with other subsidiary bodies of the treaty, as well as with other, complementary funding sources that could be utilised.
"Financial, technical, and other support for developing countries’ implementation of the new plastics treaty must be as ambitious and comprehensive as the treaty itself. Pacific SIDS, with their limited resources and infrastructure, must not be left to tackle this crisis alone,” said Dennis Clare,” a negotiator for the Federated States of Micronesia.
“This includes not only financial support for compliance but also substantial assistance for enabling activities such as institutional strengthening, policy development, and technical assistance,” Mr Clare added.
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The proposed fund on plastics has drawn inspiration from the successful Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol, which was set up by the Parties to the Montreal Protocol to assist developing countries with compliance and implementation.
“We are proposing a standalone entity, accountable directly to the Conference of the Parties, but closely linked to other subsidiary bodies, as well as to potential related, financial modules that may provide necessary, complementary support for the implementation of the plastics treaty,” Mr Clare said.
Among the core functions of the proposed fund is the support to developing countries to meet compliance costs, as well as essential enabling activities such as institutional strengthening, policy development including national plans and programmes, technology transfer, capacity building, and training.
More than 2000 delegates from around the world are combing through the revised draft text of the international legally binding instrument to address plastic pollution, hoping they will leave Ottawa with an agreed text as the Committee pushes to meet the end of 2024 deadline set to complete negotiations.
FSM is one of 14 Pacific Island countries engaging in the fourth round of negotiations which concludes on Tuesday, 30 April.
The fourth Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment is taking place in Ottawa, Canada, from 23-29 April 2024.
The Pacific Islands are represented by the Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu through the support of the Government of Australia and the United Nations.
They are supported by the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), working with partners the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (PIFS), Office of the Pacific Ocean Commissioner (OPOC), The Pacific Community (SPC), Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA), Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), Centre for International Environmental Law (CIEL), University of Wollongong, WWF and Massey University.
For more information visit: https://www.unep.org/inc-plastic-pollution/session-4