UNEP ministerial meeting on COVID-19, environment to kick off on August 18

AMMAN — As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a devastating impact on the economy and social well-being of the people in the Arab region, the UN Environment Programme in West Asia (UNEP) is preparing for the first ministerial meeting on COVID-19 and the environment which is scheduled to take place remotely on August 18, 2020.

The meeting will be chaired by the Vice President of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA), the Chief Executive of the Supreme Council for Environment in the Kingdom of Bahrain Mohamed Mubarak Bin Daina, according to a UNEP statement.

Estimates indicate that at least $42 billion and 1.7 million jobs will be lost in the region as a result of the global pandemic. Furthermore, the recent Arab Sustainable Development Report warns that the region, even before the pandemic, is not on track to achieve the 2030 Agenda and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. 

The report has also emphasised the necessity of a shift in orientation and approach towards policy integration which is inclusive of environmental sustainability.

The pandemic has affected the environment and natural resources which the people of the region rely on. 

The most obvious negative impact has been the increased generation of medical and plastic waste, loss of jobs and livelihoods and reduced investment on environmental actions, read the statement.

Nevertheless, lockdowns in the region led to reduced pollution and emissions and gave nature a short break to restore. Yet, there are no comprehensive studies in the west Asia region to quantify these impacts, it added.

UNEP has alerted the international community to the “strong linkages between the health of the people and the health of planet”. “A healthy planet is critical to our ability to rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic and to prevent future zoonotic diseases, which are passed between humans and animals,” the UNEP said in the statement.

Over 30 new human pathogens have been detected in the last three decades alone, 75 per cent of which originated in animals, according to the statement.

In an effort to shed light on the impact of COVID-19 on the environment in the region, and to recommend policy actions for advancing a more sustainable and greener recovery, the UNEP Regional Office for West Asia will convene the first virtual ministerial meeting which will be hosted by the Kingdom of Bahrain as it currently holds the vice presidency of UNEA. 

The Executive Director of the UNEP Inger Andersen will be participating in the meeting, which will be attended by the Environment Ministers and Heads of Environmental Authorities in the region.

It is expected that the outcome of the meeting will be in the form of a ministerial statement highlighting recommendations for enhancing environment priorities and actions to address the implication of COVID-19. 

The outcome will guide the UNEP in delivering focused support to countries in the region in dealing with the environmental dimension during and after the pandemic.

In preparation for the ministerial meeting, the UNEP Regional office for West Asia on Tuesday held a technical preparatory meeting which was attended by the technical focal points of the environmental ministries and authorities of the 12 countries of the West Asia region namely: Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the UAE and Yemen.  The meeting discussed the technical documents that will be presented to the ministers and made the necessary recommendations.

Mohamed Mubarak Bin Daina, affirmed that Bahrain, in its capacity as the vice president of the UNEA, is honoured to host the preparatory meeting for the first ministerial meeting in the region, indicating the Kingdom’s keenness on unifying international environmental efforts, strengthening cooperation between the countries of the region, in order to improve the environmental situation and address the challenges that threaten humans and the environment, especially in light of the current circumstance which the world is facing due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Regional Director and Representative of UNEP in West Asia Sami Dimassi highlighted that “the ministerial meeting is particularly timely”.

“It is expected that the outcome of the meeting will send clear and strong message from west Asia to the fifth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly, other ministerial fora and the international community on regional priorities, the efforts of the region in tackling environmental issues and future plans after the COVID-19 pandemic,” Dimassi added.