Capacity building activities are an intrinsic part of the global monitoring plan, as highlighted through its implementation plan and guidance document. Among these, some major activities are highlighted below.
Regional projects with GEF support
Regional Global Environment Fund (GEF) projects to assist countries in implementing the global monitoring plan (GMP) have been coordinated by UNEP through the Chemicals and Health Branch, Economy Division. An overview of the UNEP projects on POPs monitoring is available here. A pilot project was undertaken from 2005 to 2007 to assess the existing capacity and capacity building needs to analyze POPs, followed by the GEF-funded 1st Phase UNEP/GEF POPS GMP projects, which were implemented in 31 countries in the Africa Region, Pacific Islands and the Latin America and the Caribbean Region (GRULAC) from 2009 to 2012. In response to the adoption of new POPs by the Stockholm Convention Conference of Parties, the Chemicals and Health Branch executed the GEF-funded project 'Establishing the tools and methods to include the nine new POPs into the Global Monitoring Plan' from 2012-2015. The 2nd Phase UNEP/GEF POPs GMP projects are implementing through four regional projects in 42 countries in the Africa, Asia, Pacific Islands and Latin America and the Caribbean regions from 2016 to 2022.
Main activities include:
- Sampling and analysis of POPs in air, water, human milk and other abiotic and biotic matrices of national interests in the Africa, Asia, GRULAC and Pacific Islands regions
- National capacity building for the sampling and analysis of POPs and secure conditions for POPs sustainable monitoring, including the development of updating of Standard Operational Procedures (SOPs) and guidelines for POPs sampling and analysis, Training in national laboratories, and workshops and expert consultation meetings to plan for the monitoring of POPs in the future
- Establishment and updating of the POPs Laboratory Databank, which identifies operational laboratories worldwide and provides information on their capabilities to analyse classes of POPs in different matrices
- UNEP Databank of Laboratories analyzing POPs and Mercury
- POPs Interlaboratory Assessments, which have become an internationally accepted global standard and the network of POPs monitoring specialists and POPs laboratories should be considered to serve as a key component in creating the conditions for sustainable monitoring of POPs in the participating countries and globally in the future
- Outreaching and awareness raising
Summer School of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology
The Secretariat is organizing in collaboration with the Regional Centre for Toxic Compounds in the Environment (RECETOX) and other relevant institutions annual summer schools of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology. The programme of the group B (Sampling, analysis and monitoring of POPs) is designed to provide capacity building in support of implementation of the Global Monitoring Plan on POPs under Article 16 of the Stockholm Convention. More information on this initiative can be found here.