The Philippines Keynotes Global Dialogue on Oceans Session in Costa Rica
14 June 2017 PUNTARENAS, COSTA RICA — Dr. Ramon J.P. Paje, former Secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), now Vice President of the United Nations Environment Assembly, served as keynote speaker for the session on the agriculture sector at the Global Dialogue on Oceans which was held in Puntarenas, Costa Rica on June 09. The Global Dialogue was organized by the Government of the Republic of Costa Rica and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP). His Excellency Luis Guillermo Solis, President of the Republic of Costa Rica delivered a keynote speech on the first day of the Global Dialogue on June 08.
Dr. Paje explained that while the use of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) had been banned in Northern countries, old inventories of pesticides and toxic chemicals containing POPs continued to be disposed in many countries of the Global South. He cited the Philippine experience in combating the use of persistent chemicals in the agriculture sector and highlighted the need for special attention due to the harm posed by POPs to human and ecosystem health owing to the POPs’ insidious qualities including persistence or ability to be reserved in the environment for a long time, long-range transport, and bioaccumulation through the food chain.
Dr. Paje stressed the importance of behavioral change for sustainable production and consumption and the role of the government in incentivizing and disincentivizing actions toward desired behavioral outcomes that affirm the environment. Dr. Paje also highlighted that tremendous capacity of the private sector to solve many problems in pollution. With the agriculture sector being one of the leading contributors to pollution and Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Dr. Paje underscored the need for investments in research and development on alternatives to food production especially with a global population headed for 10 billion by 2050.
The Global Dialogue on Oceans was held back-to-back with the Joint Retreat of the Bureau of UNEA and the Committee of Permanent Representatives to UNEP which discussed preparations for the Third Session of the UN Environment Assembly which will be convened from December 04 to 07 under the theme “Towards a Pollution-Free Planet.”
For more information, visit www.nairobipe.dfa.gov.ph or https://www.facebook.com/PhilippineEmbassyNairobiKenya. END