JICA Advisory Team pays courtesy visit to Ministry of External Affairs

On February 28^th, JICA Advisory Team for Marine Plastic Litter Management in the Caribbean Region, headed by Mr. Ikuo Mori, paid a courtesy visit on Mr. Guillaume Simon, Deputy Permanent Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs, International Trade, Civil Aviation and Diaspora Affairs.  The Advisory Team will lead various activities to support the improvement of waste management for the purposes of reducing marine plastic waste.  These activities will be carried out in five target countries, namely, Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica and St. Lucia, with a view to build a continuous developmental cooperation framework in this field in the Caribbean region. The Advisory Team will visit the region time to time during 2022-2024. In Saint Lucia they will work with Saint Lucia Solid Waste Management Authority (SLSWMA) and other concerned governmental agencies.

Toward realization of the “Osaka Blue Ocean Vision”, Japan aims to reduce marine plastic litter to zero by 2050 by supporting developing countries’ efforts, including their capacity building and infrastructure development in the area of waste management.  To this end, the Government of Japan has launched the “MARINE Initiative” to advance effective actions to combat marine plastic litter at a global scale focusing on (1) Management of wastes, (2) Recovery of marine litter, (3) Innovation, and (4) Empowerment.  JICA is a leading agency that carries out the government initiative and has been supporting the realization of proper waste management globally.