BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:unctad.org BEGIN:VEVENT UID:6a725f5b9ae66 DTSTART:20240930T060000Z SEQUENCE:0 TRANSP:OPAQUE DTEND:20240930T140000Z LOCATION:Nairobi\, Kenya SUMMARY:Workshop on policies and standards for plastic reduction and manage ment in East and West Africa: Diving into compostability and biodegradabil ity standards CLASS:PUBLIC DESCRIPTION:As part of the SMEP Programme empirical evidence from plastic p ollution mitigation projects in Ghana\, Nigeria and Kenya has highlighted the importance of an organized framework to address plastics pollution\, i ncluding clear guidelines for adoption of biodegradables and compostables in West and East Africa in applications where they can support environment al objectives. Local policies and regulatory processes seek to manage plas tic pollution through a combination of legislation\, standards for supplie rs and extended producer responsibility\, but there is a growing realizati on that uncoordinated national actions alone are not enough. Regional coll ective actions can promote wider impact\, for example\, the East African C ommunity (EAC) is considering legislation to harmonize rules to control si ngle use plastics in the region.To support the implementation of appropria te policies and legislation to reduce plastics pollution and promote circu lar systems in East and West Africa\, UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) ha s partnered with the Environmental Coalition on Standards (ECOS) to evalua te the current status of the policy and legislative framework of plastic p roducts\, including circularity\, biodegradability and compostability\, as well as accompanying standards. This includes an examination of regulatio ns adopted to guide market agents in the sustainable use of biodegradables and compostable plastics and alternative materials in the global south. T he findings of this study will be captured in a report designed to guide h igher environmental ambition in plastics\, including biodegradation and co mpostability. This report will subsequently be used as the basis for a 2-d ay regional workshop in Nairobi\, Kenya.The workshop aims to present the r eport'\;s findings to national stakeholders and foster enhanced collab oration on plastic-related standards and policies. The workshop will conve ne National Standards Bodies (NSBs)\, Environmental Regulators from Kenya\ , Nigeria\, and Ghana\, and other key stakeholders\, providing a platform for in-depth discussions and coordination.  The output of this workshop i s expected to provide guidance to the eventual East Africa Single Use Plas tics (SUP) Bill\, being appraised by the regional parliament later this ye ar. The workshop is being delivered in cooperation with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the ALN.By the conclusion of th e workshop\, attending stakeholders should have clarity on the policy and standards landscape in their respective\, and each other'\;s\, countri es and regions\, as well as recommendations for a clear framework that ass ists market players to introduce and manage plastic products responsibly a cross their lifecycle. The knowledge shared and links created in this even t should further strengthen cross-border efforts to move away from avoidab le and mislabeled single-use plastics in Africa\, and assist regulatory ha rmonization.https://aln.africa/\n\nView meeting on unctad.org\nhttps://unc tad.org/node/46065 DTSTAMP:20260804T215331Z END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:6a725f5b9ae84 DTSTART:20241001T060000Z SEQUENCE:0 TRANSP:OPAQUE DTEND:20241001T140000Z LOCATION:Nairobi\, Kenya SUMMARY:Workshop on policies and standards for plastic reduction and manage ment in East and West Africa: Diving into compostability and biodegradabil ity standards CLASS:PUBLIC DESCRIPTION:As part of the SMEP Programme empirical evidence from plastic p ollution mitigation projects in Ghana\, Nigeria and Kenya has highlighted the importance of an organized framework to address plastics pollution\, i ncluding clear guidelines for adoption of biodegradables and compostables in West and East Africa in applications where they can support environment al objectives. Local policies and regulatory processes seek to manage plas tic pollution through a combination of legislation\, standards for supplie rs and extended producer responsibility\, but there is a growing realizati on that uncoordinated national actions alone are not enough. Regional coll ective actions can promote wider impact\, for example\, the East African C ommunity (EAC) is considering legislation to harmonize rules to control si ngle use plastics in the region.To support the implementation of appropria te policies and legislation to reduce plastics pollution and promote circu lar systems in East and West Africa\, UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) ha s partnered with the Environmental Coalition on Standards (ECOS) to evalua te the current status of the policy and legislative framework of plastic p roducts\, including circularity\, biodegradability and compostability\, as well as accompanying standards. This includes an examination of regulatio ns adopted to guide market agents in the sustainable use of biodegradables and compostable plastics and alternative materials in the global south. T he findings of this study will be captured in a report designed to guide h igher environmental ambition in plastics\, including biodegradation and co mpostability. This report will subsequently be used as the basis for a 2-d ay regional workshop in Nairobi\, Kenya.The workshop aims to present the r eport'\;s findings to national stakeholders and foster enhanced collab oration on plastic-related standards and policies. The workshop will conve ne National Standards Bodies (NSBs)\, Environmental Regulators from Kenya\ , Nigeria\, and Ghana\, and other key stakeholders\, providing a platform for in-depth discussions and coordination.  The output of this workshop i s expected to provide guidance to the eventual East Africa Single Use Plas tics (SUP) Bill\, being appraised by the regional parliament later this ye ar. The workshop is being delivered in cooperation with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the ALN.By the conclusion of th e workshop\, attending stakeholders should have clarity on the policy and standards landscape in their respective\, and each other'\;s\, countri es and regions\, as well as recommendations for a clear framework that ass ists market players to introduce and manage plastic products responsibly a cross their lifecycle. The knowledge shared and links created in this even t should further strengthen cross-border efforts to move away from avoidab le and mislabeled single-use plastics in Africa\, and assist regulatory ha rmonization.https://aln.africa/\n\nView meeting on unctad.org\nhttps://unc tad.org/node/46065 DTSTAMP:20260804T215331Z END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR