Results of the Asian Pacific Regional Consultation Meeting under the Ad hoc Open-ended Expert Group of the United Nations Environment Assembly

The Ministry of the Environment, Japan (MOEJ), with the cooperation of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and its Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (UNEP-ROAP), organized the Asian Pacific Regional Consultation Meeting, chaired by Mr. IINO Satoru from the MOEJ, under the Ad hoc Open-ended Expert Group (AHEG) of the United Nations from August 26 to 27, 2020.

At the regional meeting, member states shared their views on the current status and barriers to combat marine plastic litter and deepen discussions on future efforts.

The outcomes of the meeting were compiled in a report which will be shared with other member states, including those in other regions, at the 4^th AHEG meeting, scheduled in November 2020. The Meeting report will also be utilized for compiling AHEG deliverables, and will be reported at the 5^th Session of the United Nations Environmental Assembly (UNEA), scheduled to be held in February 2021.

As part of its efforts to achieve the Osaka Blue Ocean Vision, MOEJ will continue to actively participate in various processes such as those under the United Nations, and will lead the world in tackling marine plastic litter in cooperation with other member states.

1. Background and Purpose

At its 3rd session in 2017, the UNEA decided to establish the AHEG with the mandate to further examine the barriers to and options for combating marine plastic litter and microplastics.

At the 3rd meeting of the AHEG held in Bangkok in November 2019, regional meetings were organized and the Chairs of regional meetings, serving as the plenary meeting Bureau , were elected. (Asia and the Pacific Group: Japan (Mr. IINO Satoru from MOEJ), African Group: Kenya, Eastern European Group (EEG) : Russia, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC): Guyana, Western Europe and Others Group (WEOG) : New Zealand)

The Asian Pacific Regional Consultation Meeting, the first ever regional consultation meeting, was held with the main purpose of 1) Sharing information on the progress on ongoing work of the AHEG intersession work, 2) Discussing possible regional coordination, and 3) Facilitating consultations of the Chair and Bureau with the regions.

2. Time and Venue

26-27 August 2020, 3:00-6:00 p.m. JST (GMT+9)

Venue: Web-base

3. Host

Ministry of the Environment, Japan.

4. Participants

-Member states

-UNEP as AHEG global Secretariat and its Asia Pacific Office

-Selected regional experts on marine litter and microplastics

-International organizations

*Participants on the first day and the second day were 115 and 109, respectively.

5. Program and key outcomes

(1) Presentations by international organizations on the opportunities of regional cooperation

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) presented their support activities implemented in the Asia-Pacific region.

(2) Presentations from member states on existing activities and actions

Iran, Japan, Singapore and South Korea presented their existing activities and actions to reduce marine plastic litter and microplastics.

(3) Discussions on the methodology for analysis of the effectiveness of response options

Following the UNEP Secretariat presentation on methodologies for analyzing the effectiveness of response options using case studies, participants exchanged views on the pros and cons of the methodologies and how to apply them.

(4) Presentations by external experts

Dr. ISOBE Atsuhiko from Kyushu University and Dr. LI Daoji from East China Normal University introduced their latest findings on monitoring methodologies for marine plastic pollution.

(5) Member states' presentations on response options

Iran, Japan, the Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam and Myanmar presented their views on response options, and the UNEP Secretariat reported on the status of compilation of proposals submitted by member states around the world. The key points of discussions are as follows:

1) Sharing a global common long-term vision and targets

2) Combination of countermeasures through a life-cycle approach

3) National action plans and its promotion taking into account national conditions

-Financial and technical assistance

-Scientific knowledge database

-Sharing experiences and measuring the progress

4) Multi-stakeholder involvements

5) Structure of countermeasures

6. Future plans

The results of this regional meeting will be shared with member states, including those in regions other than the Asia-Pacific, through the AHEG-4, scheduled to be held in November 2020. It will also be utilized for compiling AHEG deliverables, and reported to the UNEA-5, which is scheduled in February 2021.

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