Japanese Ambassador to Laos Kenichi Kobayashi joined many of the Japanese Embassy staff in Vientiane and student volunteers from the National University of Laos –NUOL- on a clean-up activity by the Mekong River last Saturday.
Hosted by the Faculty of Environment, NUOL, as part of a UNEP project to provide marine and river protection against plastic pollution, the activity was also joined by participants from related organizations including Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and Mekong River Commission (MRC).
This project is funded by the Government of Japan.
A large amount of plastic waste, mainly in the form of plastic bags and bottles discarded around the night market alongside the Mekong River, was collected.
Ambassador Kenichi Kobayashi said that it was a very meaningful opportunity to work on improving the environment of the Mekong River with many participants, and that he hoped that this activity will encourage more people to pay attention to the littering problem in and around the Mekong River.
Plastic contamination of oceans and rivers is an urgent issue on a global scale. At the G20 Summit held in Osaka in 2019, the “Osaka Blue Ocean Vision” was announced with the aim of reducing additional pollution by marine plastic litter to zero by the year 2050.
To achieve this vision, Japan will continue to support capacity building and infrastructure development related to waste management.
Source: Lao News Agency
