Strengthening the institutional capacity of the State of Palestine for sound waste and chemicals management and fostering stakeholder buy-in under the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions (BRS) and supporting process towards ratification of the Minamata Convention
Project story
State of Palestine ramps up efforts to improve waste management
Project summary
The State of Palestine has well-documented challenges in the field of chemicals and waste management, which are aggravated by the complicated geopolitical situation. There are several unresolved issues in municipal and hazardous waste management:
(i) 50% of waste goes to unsanitary, random dumping sites
(ii) only 6% of waste materials are being recycled
(iii) the political situation with occupation and illegal settlements poses a major obstacle to integrated waste management.
If these issues are not addressed, they will pose both environmental risks and continue to impact the health of people exposed. The primary objective of the proposed project is to support the State of Palestine in strengthening the institutional capacity for sound waste and chemical management based on the main principles and provisions of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions and fostering buy-in from the relevant national institutions, private sector, academia and citizens.
Project objectives
The project will undertake the following measures:
- Establish an inter-agency mechanism tasked with reviewing the most pressing issues on hazardous waste and chemicals on a regular basis;
- Strengthen the institutional structure of the competent authorities, primarily the Environment Quality Authority;
- Collect information on hazardous waste and chemicals in the State of Palestine, catalyse inter-agency information sharing and implement sub-activities;
- Promote the Minamata Convention through outreach and awareness raising of its basic provisions, familiarisation of local experts with the United Nations Environment Programme tools, and preliminary identification of the local mercury challenges in the State of Palestine, which collectively will inform and create the basis for future steps and accession to the Minamata Convention.
Project details
- Party: Basel, Rotterdam, Stockholm
- Country Classification: Least developed country
- Special Programme Trust Fund: USD 240,000
- Cofinancing Total: USD 30,000
- Project duration: July 2019 - October 2021
