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Global South leaders have reaffirmed a united stance in pushing for a strong, dedicated financial mechanism under the prospective Global Plastics Treaty. This call was amplified during a high-level virtual dialogue hosted by GAIA Asia Pacific and GAIA Africa on June 24, 2025, ahead of the fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-5.2) scheduled for August.
The online panel discussion, themed “Advancing a Robust Financial Mechanism for the Prospective Plastics Instrument,” brought together delegates from Djibouti, Bangladesh, Ecuador, and Fiji. The event aimed to bolster calls for stronger financing provisions in the treaty, especially following disappointment over the weak and voluntary language in the current chair’s text, despite overwhelming support from 151 countries—mainly from the Global South—during the previous INC-5.1 talks.
Representatives warned of the disproportionate impact of plastic pollution on developing countries, including Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and economies in transition, and demanded urgent, adequate, and accessible financial resources to respond effectively to the crisis.
Ms. Hibaa-Haibado Ismael, Djibouti’s INC focal point, emphasized the need to strengthen the treaty text by retaining the proposal for a new multilateral fund and a remediation fund. She advocated prioritizing funding for developing countries and a just transition, while explicitly excluding polluting and unreliable technologies like incineration and plastic credits. “Plastic credits have a history of fraud and failure, much like carbon credits. They do not belong in a treaty that seeks real solutions,” she stressed.
Echoing this call, Dr. Sivendra Michael, Permanent Secretary of Fiji’s Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, and speaking for the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), insisted that “existing portfolios cannot and must not be used as a substitute” for a standalone financial mechanism. “They should complement the new instrument through alignment, coherence, and coordination,” he added.
Concerns over restricted access to funding under current mechanisms like the Global Environment Facility (GEF) were raised by Ecuador’s Permanent Mission representative, Mr. Walter Schuldt Espinel. “We cannot delay the establishment of the fund and leave it for the COPs to decide,” he warned, calling for a more direct and timely commitment.
Bangladesh’s Dr. Shahriar Hossain, advisor to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, framed the treaty as a critical public health issue. He called for financial tools that hold polluters accountable, including Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes and a Plastic Pollution Fee (PPF), coupled with support for a just transition.
Looking ahead to the decisive INC-5.2 negotiations in Geneva, delegates underscored the political will required to bridge words with action. “Meeting the obligations of the prospective agreement depends on the adequacy of funding,” Dr. Michael noted. “This is how we engage in negotiations in good faith and reciprocal responsibility.”
Ms. Ismael echoed the need for ambitious alignment, stating, “If we want to have an ambitious treaty, we need to raise the ambition to match the means of implementation. That is the only logical path to success.”
As the treaty process enters a critical phase, the Global South is poised to present a unified front. The momentum is clear: political courage, equity, and financial justice must underpin any meaningful global response to plastic pollution.
Dr. Michael’s closing words captured the urgency: “Geneva must not be another opportunity for procedural paralysis. Finance is a gateway to implementation, a bridge to ambition, and a cornerstone of justice.”
By Voice Africa International Desk
