The Environment Protection Agency (EPA) has on the 11th March 2024 collaborated with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and Grid Arendal Norway in engaging stakeholders on the Revised Zero Draft of the United Nations Plastic Pollution Treaty at the Atlantic Lumley Hotel in Freetown.

The Executive Chairman of the Environmental Protection Agency, Abu-Bakarr S. Massaquoi maintained that there is a need to address plastic pollution, which has over the decade become one of the pressing environmental crises.

He added that the Agency is dedicated to generating the needed evidence to guide policy decisions, extending gratitude to Grid Arendal, IUCN, and NORAD for their invaluable support as well as stressing the imperative of collaborative efforts amidst the ongoing negotiations for the plastic treaty, foreseeing its potential to reshape the dynamics of plastic waste management.

The Director of the Natural Resources Governance Directorate, Paul A. Lamin, provided an overview of the workshop which he said was organized in the framework of AFRIPAC (Effective Capacity-Building for Global Plastic in Africa).

AFRIPAC, a joint initiative by Grid Arendal and IUCN, aims to enhance technical and legal capacities in Sierra Leone to effectively participate in the ongoing United Nations Plastic Treaty Negotiation.