Central Asian NGOs Organize Workshops Supporting GHS Implementation

Foundation in Support of Civil Initiatives (FSCI) and Independent Ecological Expertise (IEE), IPEN Participating Organizations in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, recently successfully completed Quick Start Programme-funded projects related to supporting SAICM and GHS (Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals) implementation in their respective countries. The final workshops were held in June in Dushanbe and Bishkek, and were attended by representatives from various ministries such as the Ministries of Health, Economic Development and Trade, Agriculture, Energy, Industry and Transport, as well as state agencies on Environment Protection and Forestry, other related agencies, scientific and research institutes, consulting companies and more. 

In Tajikistan, FSCI, in partnership with the Tajik Ministry of Health and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), led the work on the development of a National GHS Implementation Strategy and Action Plan. The Coordination Committee formed in the frame of the project conducted many trainings and awareness-raising meetings where GHS requirements, pictograms, classification and labeling were presented and discussed in detail with stakeholders. FSCI initiated the development of recommendations on the GHS implementation for the inclusion into the National Sustainable Development Strategy of Tajikistan (NSDS). NSDS will be approved in November 2015 for the period until 2030. 

In Kyrgyzstan, the Ministry on Economy and Antimonopoly Policy and IEE led the process to develop a GHS Implementation Programe and Action Plan, and IEE presented the Plan at the workshop in Bishkek and answered questions related to the implementation of the GHS requirements in different economic sectors. Tremendous success was achieved when a Kyrgyzstan governmental decree was adopted that confirms the approval of the Plan. The Ministry on Economy and Antimonopoly Policy and IEE will continue monitoring the implementation of the Program requirements as well as to assist relevant ministries and other stakeholders in GHS implementation in different sectors.

Full workshop report (Tajikistan, FSCI)

Full workshop report (Kyrgyzstan, IEE). More information can be found at: http://eco-expertise.org/