Nestled at the boundary between Eastern Europe and Western Asia, the country of Georgia possesses a unique national identity rivaled only by its striking natural features. Ranging from beautiful snow-capped mountain peaks to lush, forested valleys, Georgia’s landscape showcases nature on the most magnificent of scales.
The Georgian government has made it a priority to protect the health of this spectacular environment and the 3.7 million people it supports. One such protection measure is to improve its management of hazardous chemicals and waste.
To accomplish this, the country is launching a three-year project that will minimize the threats these substances pose to public and ecological health. This project, supported by the United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP’s) Special Programme, will build the nation’s capacity to better regulate the use and disposal of dangerous substances.
Sound chemicals and waste management is already a high priority for the country, evidenced by its being a party to the Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm conventions. However, like many countries, Georgia has faced challenges in putting the tenets of these multinational environmental agreements into practice.
Obstacles have included limited institutional capacity and coordination to fully meet its obligations, as well as low stakeholder engagement and a lack of public awareness on the negative effects of poor chemical and waste management.
The project, supported by UNEP’s Chemicals and Waste Management Programme, will systemically address these challenges and seek to close additional gaps that put both people and nature at risk.
The project will kick off with the creation of the Governmental Permanent Inter-Agency Working Group (IAGW) on chemicals and waste management. The need for such a group is evidenced by the lack of knowledge sharing and cooperation among agencies, which has hindered Georgia from developing and implementing effective management strategies.
Charged with coordinating policymaking work on chemicals and waste management, this multi-stakeholder body will comprise staff representing key ministries as well as public and private organizations. To inform its policymaking, the IAGW will build the existing capacities and experience of stakeholders who have previously participated in the management of chemicals and waste and will also involve new stakeholders who will bring new skills and expertise.
In addition, the IAGW will lay the groundwork for the achievement of key project goals. The harmonization of national legislation with multilateral environmental agreements will be tackled first, given that Georgia’s existing legislation lacks detailed and clear provisions. To remedy oversight, the group will undertake a comprehensive gap analysis of existing legislation and institutional capacities.
Findings from the analysis will be used to develop a package of legal amendments on chemicals and waste management that will be submitted to the government for adoption.
Under the project, an integrated database on waste and chemicals will also be launched. Currently, information on the use of chemicals is very limited in Georgia. The anticipated integrated database will provide the IAGW and other stakeholders with information on the types and amounts of chemicals produced or imported into Georgia, as well as those that are exported.
Information on a wide range of chemicals will be collected, including fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, disinfectants, pest control chemicals, petroleum products, and chemicals for household use.
Training and awareness-raising is also a key feature of the project. At least 100 decision-makers and stakeholders, from different sectors, will receive regular training on the sound management of waste and chemicals. To build the capacities of as many stakeholders as possible, training-of-trainers events will also be conducted throughout the life of the project.
By training people who can then go on to train others, the project will not only ensure a broader reach but also increase sustainability by enabling a continuous expansion of relevant knowledge among relevant stakeholders. Furthermore, the project will support awareness-raising events for a broad spectrum of stakeholders, including those from governmental agencies, the non-governmental sector, academia, and the private sector. They in turn will work proactively to educate those within their circles, and the general public, about safe and legal chemical and waste management practices.
Woven throughout the project will be a focus on promoting women’s engagement, including creating training opportunities, holding awareness-raising events geared towards women’s groups, and collecting relevant sex-disaggregated data. These actions will ensure integration of gender perspectives into the design and implementation of policies at the national level for effective chemicals and waste management.
The new project aims to advance Georgia’s existing efforts to manage chemicals and waste and realize its commitments to relevant international agreements. Its holistic approach is forging a blueprint for sustainable development that benefits both people and nature.
For further information please contact the Special Programme Secretariat at unepchemicalsspecialprogramme@un.org
