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The fashion industry has a lot of potential for change, but currently faces a lot of problems. Almost 65 per cent of global fabric consumption consists of synthetic fibres derived from fossil fuels, which are not biodegradable and add to the already mounting problem of microplastics in our…
Colombia is an important coal producer. Its overall extraction represents over 81.2% of Latin American output. Its reserves constitute almost a half of the continent’s total reserves of these resources. Colombia is also the world's fourth largest exporter of coal with low ash and sulfur dioxide…
There are about 162.8 million micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the world. More than 500 million people are employed in these enterprises. However, these companies face many barriers to participating in international trade, also missing out on opportunities in the booming global…
“We pledge that no one will be left behind” — this is what countries declared when adopting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. They vowed to reach the furthest behind first.Members of minority groups are often disadvantaged and discriminated against; in short, they are often the…
What can we learn from each other to deliver better results on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)? When governments and key stakeholders gather in less than two weeks for the Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (21-22 March), they will have their hands full as they exchange…
The Government of Azerbaijan intends to increase the importance of conserving and improving the country’s forest resources and strengthening the functions of forests around the country.In this regard, restructuring forestry institutions and setting-up a new management system are now on top of…
Trade and transport physical flows of goods are moving more and more towards the use of electronic data exchange to replace the paper flow of information. Electronic messages are being proposed from all sides often, independently from each other, developed within a bubble of their individual…
Air pollution impacts our health, our environment and our economy. Clean air is unfortunately not a given in all parts of the world. Almost every day, we hear news about high air pollution episodes in different cities around the globe. They remind us time and again that air pollution is a…
In September, last year, on the day of the opening of the Milano Fashion Week, The New York Times published an investigation shedding a disturbing light on the practices of several renowned clothing brands in South Italy. Finishing a luxury coat, sold for 800-2000 €, requires some 4-5 hours of…
Upon request by the Government of Uzbekistan, UNECE will review the country’s environmental performance for a third time, 10 years after the previous (second) review took place. To ensure comprehensive information and objective analysis for the review, a team of 19 experts from different…
Over the past years, Armenia went through severe structural changes which also affected the forest sector. Forests, which were formerly under the auspices of the Ministry of Agriculture are now the responsibility of the Ministry of Nature Protection together with areas dedicated to nature…
Interoperability of Single Window and other IT systems that simplify international trade procedures can only be achieved by using harmonized standards for data sharing.Azerbaijan has already developed a quite advanced Single Window system, which is particularly important since the country does…
Food loss and waste occurs throughout the entire supply chain, from production to consumer, at almost every node of the chain. The gigantic amount of 1.6 billion tonnes of food worth USD 1.2 trillion is lost every year, according to FAO. The Boston Consulting Group, in its 2018 report, presented…
Strengthening environmental governance and the development of environmental policies both play an important role in the achievement of many of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). On 11–12 February 2019, a UNECE expert mission visited ministries and stakeholders in Podgorica to kick off a…
Water, climate and finance know no borders. This brings both challenges and opportunities. The majority of freshwater worldwide flows in transboundary basins and most climate change impacts are felt through the water cycle. Transboundary cooperation in climate change adaptation is crucial for…
Landlocked developing countries (LLDCs) face many complex challenges. Due to their geographic remoteness, their lack of direct access to the open sea and the high transport and transit costs they face, they are at a significant economic disadvantage compared to the rest of the world. The Euro-…
With an area of approximately 350,000 km2, the Senegalo-Mauritanian aquifer basin is the largest basin in the Atlantic margin of North-West Africa. The groundwater it contains is a strategic resource for the four aquifer States, respectively The Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Mauritania and Senegal,…
Automation holds enormous potential for the future of transport and can, if properly harnessed, catalyze efforts to realize the ambitious vision of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.In order to speed up efforts to unlock the potential of automation – in terms of improved safety,…
What is common between the green sovereign bond launched in 2017 by France’s State Treasury, the National Road Map for the Circular Economy of Finland for the period 2016–2025, and the Swiss regulation on compulsory recovery and reuse of phosphorus from wastewater streams and separated organic…
Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing accounts for one-fourth of all fish catches and costs a staggering USD 23 billion to legitimate fishers every year. This threatens fish stocks, ocean biodiversity and the economic security of fishing communities. Sustainable Development Goal (…
Countries cannot know whether they are successful in implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, unless success is defined and tracked. SDG indicators provide such a definition and something to track. As a result, indicators –…
What steps have been taken and what still needs to be done to improve environmental conditions, deliver inclusive economic growth and ensure resilience to climate change? What progress has been made in achieving public participation in decision-making and the reform of education systems towards…
Population ageing has been identified by the Government of Belarus as a major challenge. At the request of the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of the Republic of Belarus, UNECE has started working on a roadmap supporting the Government of Belarus in the development of a National…
Clean air is an essential need for all of us. Our health, our environment, even our economy depends on it. Every year 7 million people die prematurely globally because of exposure to air pollution. The majority of air pollutant-related deaths occur in developing countries, with Western Pacific…
UNECE has launched a project to support Belarus in assessing its readiness to implement the measures in the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), identify gaps, and draft a work plan to implement not yet fulfilled measures. Any country aspiring to join the WTO now will have to implement the…