More and more mercury emissions and discharges are a problem all over the world, as they are dangerous for the environment and human health. To remedy this, many actions have been undertaken on both sides, in particular the adoption in 2013 of the Minamata Convention on Mercury. With this in mind and in pursuit of the activities of member countries, the face-to-face segment of the 4th Conference of the Parties to the Minamata Convention on Mercury (COP4) has been held since Monday, March 21, 2022 in Bali, Indonesia.
Ratified by more than one hundred countries around the world, including Burkina Faso, the Minamata Convention on Mercury aims to protect human health and the environment against anthropogenic emissions and discharges of mercury and mercury compounds. It is within this framework that this meeting in Bali is being held, to enable the various participants to take decisions likely to protect health and the environment against these mercury emissions and discharges.
Thus, several points were discussed during this meeting which is scheduled to end this Friday, March 25, 2022. These include artisanal and small-scale gold mining, waste of mercury, the resources and the financial mechanism of the Convention, without forgetting the evaluation of the effectiveness of the Convention.
For its part, Burkina Faso, whose position is defended by the Focal Point of the Convention, Roger Baro, who is also Vice-President of COP4, and Serge Alain Nebié, Technical Assistant to the Focal Point, intervened mainly on dental amalgam and lamps containing mercury.
While waiting for the main decisions of COP4, it can be noted that “the African region supports the Bali declaration on the illegal trade in mercury”.
As a reminder, it was on April 10, 2017 that Burkina Faso acceded to this Convention.
Alizeta Zoure
Latribunedufaso.net
Source: DCPM / MEEEA