Bangkok, Thailand, 29 April 2022 ‒ The National Ozone Officers in the South-Asia (SA), Southeast Asia (SEA) and Pacific Islands (PIC) Networks virtually gathered and agreed to have their first in-person Network meeting from 17-19 July 2022 in Bangkok, Thailand, back-to-back with the forty-fourth meeting of the Open-ended Working Group of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol (OEWG-44) from 11-16 July 2022 and the Fifth Extraordinary Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol (ExMOP5) on 16 July 2022.
Bangkok, Thailand, 21 March 2022 – The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) OzonAction Compliance Assistance Programme (CAP), Asia and the Pacific Office organized a virtual thematic workshop on the integration of Good Servicing Practices (GSP) into national Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) Systems to promote a competency-based certification programme to continue efforts on knowledge and experience sharing among National Ozone Officers’ Networks of South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands Countries
Bangkok, Thailand, 14 February 2022 – The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) OzonAction Compliance Assistance Programme (CAP), Asia and the Pacific Office convened a virtual thematic workshop for National Ozone Officers from the Pacific Islands, South Asia and Southeast Asia Networks to further develop and advance the Asia Pacific Regional Ozone2Climate Art Contest.
The following stories from Sierra Leone and Solomon Islands are extracts from the booklet 'Women in the Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Industry."
STORY BY HANNAH I. KAMARA - SIERRA LEONE
Bangkok, 23 November 2021 - The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) OzonAction Compliance Assistance Programme (CAP), in the Asia-Pacific Office, in collaboration with UNEP’s National Environmental Law Unit organized a thematic workshop on Strengthening Enforcement of National Montreal Protocol Legislations for National Ozone Unit (NOU) staff and Enforcement Officers of South Asia (SA), Southeast Asia (SEA), and the Pacific Island Countries (PIC).
Bangkok, 20 October 2021 ‒ On 20 October, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) OzonAction Compliance Assistance Programme (CAP), Asia and the Pacific Office organized a thematic workshop on the Digitalization of Licensing and Quota Systems for National Ozone Unit (NOU) staff and Customs Officers of South Asia (SA), Southeast Asia (SEA), and the Pacific Island Countries (PIC). 104 participants (38 female and 66 male) from 23 regional countries and representatives from Australia and the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) attended the meeting.
Beijing, 3 November 2021 ‒ China began officially implementing its hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) import and export licensing system as of 1 November 2021, one and a half months earlier than the date stipulated by the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, according to a recent announcement jointly made by China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE), the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) and the General Administration of Customs (GAC).
Bangkok, 14 October 2022 ‒ The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) OzonAction Compliance Assistance Programme (CAP), Asia and the Pacific Office organized a virtual orientation workshop for 69 (32 female and 37 male) new National Ozone Officers (NOO) and other staff members of 24 National Ozone Units (NOUs) in two sessions consecutively on 12 and 14 October 2021.
Bangkok, Thailand, 24 September 2021 – To support National Ozone Officers (NOOs) from the Regional Networks of South Asia (SA), Southeast Asia (SEA), and Pacific Island Countries (PICs) in exchanging ideas on how to continue delivering approved activities under the Multilateral Fund in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) OzonAction Compliance Assistance Programme (CAP), Asia and the Pacific Office organized three virtual network meetings consecutively on 17, 19 and 25 August 2021.
Thimphu, Bhutan, 4 October 2021 – With active local organization of the National Ozone Unit (NOU) of Bhutan, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), OzonAction Compliance Assistance Programme (CAP), assisted Bhutan to deliver a four-day virtual training programme on Good Servicing Practices on low-GWP and flammable refrigerants. Eighty-seven participants (including 13 female technicians) from Bhutan and Asia-Pacific region attended the workshop between 28 June and 1 July 2021.
Bangkok, 16 September 2021 ‒ “How can our daily life contribute to the ozone layer protection?” Mr. Siwakorn Maneethein, a third-year student of Geological Sciences at the Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Thailand, enthusiastic about sustainable natural resources and environmental preservation shared his understanding of this significant question at a press conference of the launch of the Asia Pacific Ozone2Climate Art Contest on World Ozone Day, 16 September 2021.
Bangkok, Thailand, 23 July 2021 – Sixteen participants (seven female and nine male) from seven Pacific Island Countries (PIC) joined a virtual meeting on 23 July 2021 to discuss the use of mandatory hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) cylinder labelling requirements to further enhance the enforcement of their national licensing systems. The meeting was hosted by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) OzonAction Compliance Assistance Programme (CAP), Asia and the Pacific Office.
Bangkok, Thailand, 2 August 2021 – The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) OzonAction Compliance Assistance Programme (CAP), Asia and the Pacific Office organized two virtual meetings on 27 and 28 July 2021, to assist National Ozone Officers from the Regional Networks of Ozone Officers for South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Pacific Island Countries to gain a better understanding of various mechanisms to employ for more accurate data collection and data
Bangkok, Thailand, 12 March 2021 ‒ National Ozone Officers from the Pacific Island Countries (PICs) – Cook Islands, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu – as well as representatives from the Government of Australia, a bilateral implementing agency, and
Bangkok, 22 October 2020 ‒ The Pacific region is renowned for its serene and prestigious islands, including its diverse and rich ecosystems, but that natural and human wealth continues to face the major threat of climate change.
The ozone layer in the stratosphere absorbs a portion of the sun radiation; therefore, ozone layer depletion has been linked to many harmful effects, including skin cancer, cataracts, and damage to some crops and marine life.
Bangkok, 18 August 2020 – Accurate and timely data are the bedrock of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. The data collected and reported by individual Parties to this multilateral environmental agreement are used for many purposes ranging from assessing a country's compliance to determining its eligibility for financial support.
Bangkok, 24 December 2019 ̶ How well Ozone Officers and their teams do in their work – developing projects, managing national strategies, reporting data, developing and enforcing policies, working with national and international institutions – directly or indirectly affects the status of their country's compliance with its obligations under the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer.
Koror, Palau, 16 August 2019 — Besides training of enforcement officers, what other practices are effective for monitoring and enforcing national laws and regulations relating to hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) and other ozone depleting substances (ODS)?
Koror, Palau, 12 August 2019 — What are the challenges and policy options for the Pacific Island Countries (PIC) to sustain compliance with Montreal Protocol obligations notwithstanding that most countries have achieved more than 90% reduction in HCFC consumption in 2018? How should the PIC countries prepare themselves to meet initial obligations under the Kigali Amendment especially in ensuring
Enforcement of HCFC Licensing Systems: Beyond the Customs Check-point
Sharing examples of best practices from Lao PDR, Mongolia and the Federated States of Micronesia.
BANGKOK, THAILAND, 2 October 2018.— Forty-seven officials from 14 Pacific Island Country governments gathered in Bangkok to identify opportunities and forge cooperation for promoting energy efficient cooling equipment in their countries and region. The catalyst for the gathering was the recent agreement of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances the Deplete the Ozone Layer.