Türkiye and UNODC Marked the “International Zero Waste Day” in Vienna UNODC Headquarters

 

28 March 2024, Vienna, Austria - Within the framework of the International Zero Waste Day, the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Türkiye in Vienna held a special event at UNODC Headquarters on 28th of March. The event was supported by UNODC Headquarters and the Regional Office for South-Eastern Europe in Istanbul. 

In his opening remarks, HE Ambassador Levent Eler, Permanent Representative of Türkiye to the United Nations in Vienna, noted that 30th March is proclaimed as the “International Day of Zero Waste”, following the adoption of the resolution 77/161, which was proposed by Türkiye together with 105 countries on 14 December 2022. Since then, worldwide events have been organized on this special day aiming to increase awareness of the significance of waste management and the potential implications on the planet.

The event continued with the introduction of the Zero Waste Project in Türkiye and the video message by Ms Emine Erdoğan, First Lady of Türkiye, reminding that all the resources in nature are the joint heritage of mankind. Zero Waste Project is an initiative spearheaded by the First Lady of Türkiye, and led by the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change of Türkiye, launched in 2017 with the motto of “the earth is our common home”. The Project had significant and exemplary achievements at national, regional and international levels since the beginning.

During this special event, UNODC experts shared their analysis of the general waste flows from Global North to Global South with a specific reference to South-Eastern European jurisdictions. UNODC pays special attention on illicit waste trafficking due to its connection with transnational organized crime and corruption as well as for being highly lucrative with low risk for identification and prosecution. A special report of UNODC on this illicit crime will be launched in the near future  to elaborate on all the aspects and dynamics of waste trafficking.

Recognizing the severe implications of waste trafficking as well as the lack of proper waste management for the environment and human health, the UNODC Regional Office for South-Eastern Europe (ROSEE) has included and prioritized this serious crime and environmental threat in the new Regional Programme for South-Eastern Europe 2024-2029, under the Sub-programmes covering transnational organized crime in all its forms and corruption.