- High-level forum on clean air organized -
In order to meet the growing challenges of air pollution, the Ministry of Environment and Tourism, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific and the United Nations Environment Program are organizing the Asia and the Pacific High-Level Forum on Clean Air on March 2 and 3.
During the forum, it was mentioned that air pollution has a large impact on human health and ecosystems and is the most important global environmental cause of premature deaths. The latest update of the WHO Air Quality Guidelines states that seven million people worldwide annually die prematurely of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases that are attributable to ambient and household air pollution. The greatest number (two-thirds) of these premature deaths occurred in the South-East Asian and Western Pacific regions, which can be attributed to the rapid economical and industrial and urban growth in these areas.
Minister of Environment and Tourism B.Bat-Erdene remarked at the forum, “International conferences and meetings are being held worldwide focusing on issues related to heavy industries and other greenhouse gas emissions affecting climate change. In order to solve air pollution in Mongolia, it is necessary to implement standard measures for human health rather than standards based on fuel and industry. Kazakhstan decided to switch to 100 percent electric cars by 2024. By 2025, Mongolia is going to start the work of increasing the number of electric cars to 30 percent. Through this forum, the ‘Billions of Trees’ national movement initiated by the president of Mongolia will be carried out more vigorously.”
The head of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) highlighted, “Today’s forum was approved by the Seventh Meeting of the Environment and Development Committee of the United Nations Asia-Pacific Economic and Social Commission in November 2022. At the seventh session of the ESCAP Committee on Environment and Development, member states of ESCAP adopted the Asia-Pacific Regional Action Program on Air Pollution (RAPAP), which covers improving air quality management, facilitating air quality monitoring, sharing open data, exchanging best practice, supporting capacity building and mobilizing multilateral cooperation. It is the first document organized in the region on the issue of air pollution. For example, countries in the Asia-Pacific region did not have any organized documents in the field of air pollution. The government of Mongolia took an active part in the activities of this forum. It is a document to coordinate activities for clean air against air pollution within the framework of the Pacific region, to support work at the policy level, to transfer open information between countries, and to define and improve cooperation on technical requirements at the regional level. For the successful implementation of this program, it is necessary to cooperate within the interests and aspirations of the member countries of Asia and the Pacific. Mongolia is a country with extreme climate. Therefore, to solve the problem of air pollution, it is necessary to solve the problem of energy first. Thermal power plants need technological innovation. Most of the countries with the same weather conditions as Mongolia should switch to clean energy and reduce air pollution by using clean fuel. European countries have experience using geothermal energy to combat polluted air. This method is also suitable for Mongolia.”
This forum is one of the activities in preparation for the 17th conference of the parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Desertification (COP 17), which will be held in Mongolia in 2026. On the second day of the forum, GIZ and GGGI are organizing separate field trips to show how building energy efficiency and green buildings help combat the air pollution.
More than 200 representatives from 53 countries, including high-level representatives from governments, national experts, representatives from multilateral and sub-regional mechanisms and academic networks on air pollution, and experts from research, academic institutions, CSOs and other stakeholder groups, discussed air quality assessment issues and shared
good practices.
The forum began with a round table meeting at the ministerial level. It consists of five main sessions, and 12 international organizations and representative companies of the private sector organized an exhibition and activity presentation event to present the best technologies and solutions of renewable energy and environmentally friendly technologies.
