The Global Environment Facility (GEF) CEO Naoko Ishii confirmed this week in Dakar, Senegal, that the GEF will invest US$ 141 million in projects for the reduction of mercury emissions and anthropogenic releases
On July 13 Naoko Ishii, GEF CEO, started her 5-day visit to Senegal where she participated in the sub-regional workshop for the representatives of francophone countries on the ratification and implementation of the Minamata Convention on Mercury, and ensured the GEF’s support to countries that ratify the Convention. Ms. Ishii highlighted the role the GEF will play in the implementation of the Convention, investing US$ 141 million during GEF 6 for countries that ratify it. This includes the funding of 20 projects in 22 countries totaling US$ 41 million for priority issues of the negotiation process.
“We will assist countries in conducting the assessment and identification of mercury emission sources, assist in the reduction of emissions and discharges, and work with traditional miners so they can contribute to reducing mercury emissions,” said Ishii.
The Minamata Convention aims to control and reduce mercury emissions to protect human health and the environment, and calls for the progressive ban of mining, and products and processes using mercury by 2020.
Ms. Ishii underscored the importance of understanding that mercury is a global pollutant, emanating from different country-specific sources. The primary sources of emissions are artisanal mining, and large-scale industrial installations such as power plants with coal, industrial boilers and waste incinerators.
”Mercury emissions tend to disperse rapidly throughout the world, crossing borders and causing health problems and environmental damage,” she stated.
The interim executive secretary of the Minamata Convention, Fatoumata Keita Ouane, explained the importance of the workshop in sharing the objectives of the Convention and allowing for a discussion among the countries of the region on the challenges and opportunities available to the countries that ratify it. The Dakar workshop will provide an opportunity to inform the countries that have not yet signed the Convention with a deeper understanding to reconcile the articles of the Convention with national legislation. Thanks to the workshop, the countries will also understand the support they can receive from international institutions to better identify the threat, and work on project development, financing, donor engagement, and technological and technical support to replace the use of mercury.
During her visit, Ms. Ishii met with the Senegalese Prime Minister, Muhammad Dionne, and the Minister of the Environment and Sustainable Development, Abdoulaye Balde. She maintained that the development of sustainable cities requires a systemic and integrated urban design. The Integrated Approach Pilot (IAP) Program on Sustainable Cities is one of the three innovative signature programs designed for GEF-6, guided by the recently approved GEF 2020 strategy. It offers a direct pathway to secure higher returns for the investment given that cities are now responsible for over 70% of carbon dioxide emissions globally.
During her stay in Senegal, Ms. Ishii made several site visits, including one to the classified forest of Mbao, the new urban center Diamniadio, the Bargny and Rufisque coastlines, and the Mbeubeuss platform, a garbage dump site. She noted that the discharge at Mbeubeuss creates problems of public health and the environment. At Rufisque, the GEF CEO witnessed the effect of sea level rise and coastal erosion, where entire constructions are now found under the sea.
Ms. Ishii, who hails from Japan, a country severely affected by Minamata disease, concluded that the GEF is ready to support the development and demonstration of innovative technologies for reducing mercury, including its use and control from emission sources, and sound management of mercury stocks.
More on the Minamata Convention
The text of the Minamata Convention on Mercury was adopted in Japan on October 10, 2013, and opened for signing. It aims at protecting human health and the environment from emissions and anthropogenic releases of mercury and its compounds. It also provides a series of measures to this end. These aim to regulate the supply and demand of mercury, including limiting some of its sources, such as primary extraction, and regulate the products as well as the manufacturing processes that involve it. The same applies for artisanal and small scale gold-mining. The text also includes the provision of technical and financial support to developing countries or with economies in transition and implements the mechanism that will provide predictable, sufficient and timely financial resources. Over one hundred states have already signed the Convention, among which only the United States and Guinea have ratified it.