Geneva plastic pollution talks end in deadlock
Environment & Climate
By
James Wanzala
| Aug 24, 2025
Ten days of negotiations of Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution have ended today without a consensus on a text of the instrument.
The resumed fifth session (INC-5.2) talks, which were held at Palais des Nations in Geneva were also to come up an instrument on marine environment.
The Committee agreed to resume negotiations at a future date to be announced.
READ MORE
How low-interest regime shrunk banks' half-year interest income
State to cap LPG prices in fresh bid to tame prices, raise uptake
State agencies urged to prioritise PPPs in budgeting
Banks race to counties as SME financing demand surges
Why banks are in scrutiny over slow response to CBK rate cuts
KPA acquires 10 new cranes in bid to improve efficiency
Tea agency asks Mombasa County officials to waive Sh7,000 levy on tea ferrying trucks
Kenya gets debt-cost relief in SP's latest rating upgrade
How banks are reaping big from regional units
Why Kenya's motorcycle moment demands we turn plans into cash
The meeting adjourned with a clearly expressed desire by Member States to continue the process, recognising the significant difference of views between states.
The talks saw more than 2,600 participants gather, including over 1,400 Member delegates from 183 countries, and close to 1,000 Observers representing over 400 organisations.
Some 70 Ministers and Vice Ministers, as well as 30 other high-level representatives, also held informal roundtables on the margins of the session.
“This has been a hard-fought 10 days against the backdrop of geopolitical complexities, economic challenges, and multilateral strains. However, one thing remains clear: despite these complexities, all countries clearly want to remain at the table,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).
She added: “While we did not land the treaty text we hoped for, we at UNEP will continue the work against plastic pollution – pollution that is in our groundwater, in our soil, in our rivers, in our oceans and yes, in our bodies.”
The goal of INC-5.2 was to agree on the instrument’s text and highlight unresolved issues requiring further preparatory work ahead of a diplomatic conference. Despite intensive engagement, Members of the Committee were unable to reach consensus on the proposed texts.
“Failing to reach the goal we set for ourselves may bring sadness, even frustration. Yet it should not lead to discouragement. On the contrary, it should spur us to regain our energy, renew our commitments, and unite our aspirations,” said INC Chair Luis Valdivieso.
He added: “It has not happened yet in Geneva, but I have no doubt that the day will come when the international community will unite its will and join hands to protect our environment and safeguard the health of our people.”
The Geneva session follows INC 5.1, which took place in November/December 2024 in Busan, Republic of Korea.
It was preceded by four sessions: INC-1 in Punta del Este in November 2022, INC-2, held in Paris in June 2023, INC-3 in Nairobi in November 2023 and INC-4, which took place in Ottawa in April 2024.