By: Rodney Pienaar
Namibia has made considerable progress in phasing out ozone depleting substances and adopting ozone and climate friendly technology, industrialization minister Tjekero Tweya has said.
Having totally phased out Chlorofluorocarbons in 2008 the country remains committed to eliminating Hydrochlorofluorocarbons in all sectors during the set period of 2012-2020, he said.
“The phase out schedule for Namibia is based on an acceleration approach under the Montreal Protocol. Due to her commitment the HCFC consumption has already been drastically reduced by 80 percent from the baseline. Namibia has enacted HCFC regulations and established a quota system for HCFC imports aimed at maintaining records and ensuring that reduction in HFCF imports are archived.”
“We acknowledge that the replacement of HCFCs with HFCs has resulted in its rapidly increasing consumption rate as depicted in the ozone depleting substances alternative survey conducted in 2016,” he said.
Tweya also said that the ministry has played a significant role in coordinating and ensuring that Namibia remains compliant to the Montreal Protocol of 1987 which the country is party to.
“Proactively, parties to the Montreal Protocol have risen to address this challenge by adopting the Kigali Amendment whose entry into force has already been met. We believe that this will not only benefit the global climate but also a large portion of our population which has limited means of adaptation to the threats of climate change. We remain confident that the details of amendment will address the challenges that were raised during the negotiations which includes issues of capacity, awareness raising, technology adoption and availability of alternative technologies,” he said.
He added that the Kigali Amendment was entered in January and that Namibia is committed to facilitating its speedy ratification. The country will work with all concerned to ensure its successful implementation and eventual phase-down of HFC consumption and subsequent reduction of their atmospheric abundance.
Moreover, Tweya commended the efforts by parties to the Montreal Protocol in working tirelessly beyond the call of duty to phase out ozone depleting substances, making it to be the most successful environmental treaty with tangible strategic outcomes.
