Modern world changing towards green revolution - Yapa

Ishara Mudugamuwa

Management and the use of the vast data and information generated by researches in various sectors of development, new technologies and best practices and other forms of technological advancement is a challenge for developing countries, said Environment Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa.

It is a great achievement for developing countries to gather these information and data and use them in national development agendas, he said.

The minister was speaking at the inauguration of a training workshop on Establishment of Environment Data and Information Management System for South Asia at the Galadari Hotel, Colombo last week.

The minister said the training workshop is timely as the modern world order is converting and changing towards green revolution, sustainable development and eco - friendly development practices to counter climate change impacts.

“These will be the highlights at upcoming global events like Rio+20, where world leaders are focusing their attention to review the global sustainable development agenda for the past 20 years and prepare a new strategy for the next decade,” he said.

“Agenda 21 says that in sustainable development, everyone is a user and also a provider of information considered in the broad sense. This include data, information, appropriately packaged experience and knowledge,’ he said.

“The need for information arises at all levels, from that of senior decision makers at national and international levels to the grass-roots and individual levels. It highlights two major areas of concern, the data gaps and the availability of information. The gap in the availability, quality, coherence, standardization and accessibility of data is a common problem found in almost all developing countries,” Yapa said.

The minister also highlighted that participants of the workshop should pay their attention on some key areas such as environment monitoring which incorporate enabling policies, legislation, standards and related institutional mechanism required for such monitoring, environmental statistics and how these information data and monitoring results can be converted into relevant policy decisions and also to use these results in national development agendas and the constrains faced in the implementation process.

“Air pollution related issues, trans boundary air pollution, sustainable transport and clean fuels, hazardous waste disposal and their trans boundary movements, coastal and marine pollution, oil spill contingencies, climate change and climate change impacts and strategic environment assessments, environment impact assessments are some of the key subject areas where our countries can share information and data in our own national development agendas,” the minister said.

Environment Ministry secretary D M U D Basnayake, officiating Director General / Administrative Officer at South Asia Co-operative Environment Program Jacintha Tissera, United Nations Environment Programme representatives and country representatives of the SAARC region also participated.