Swiss know-how contributing to “green industrialisation” in developing countries
Bern, 21.05.2012 - On the occasion of the visit of Kandeh Yumkella, Director-General of the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), to Switzerland on 21 May, the Director of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), Marie-Gabrielle Ineichen-Fleisch, signed a project agreement for 4.0 million Swiss francs to promote a more efficient use of industrial resources in Indonesia. SECO and UNIDO will also present the opportunities created through “green industry” at the upcoming Rio+20 Conference on Sustainable Development.
In accordance with the resolutions of the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio, SECO has worked with UNIDO to support Cleaner Production Centres in a dozen developing countries. These are advisory centres offering local SMEs the benefit of Swiss expertise to lower their use of energy and resources, enabling them to become more competitive while protecting the environment.
Now, as part of SECO’s economic cooperation, such a “Resource Efficient and Cleaner Production” programme will also be implemented in Indonesia. Switzerland’s commitment will allow for the creation of an advisory network on ecoefficiency for SMEs in food processing and tourism. The points of contact between government, industry and the financial sector will also be studied and improved.
Indonesia is one of the world’s largest producers of greenhouse gases. Apart from promoting a more sustainable management of tropical rainforests – another area supported by SECO in Indonesia – industrial resource efficiency also has the potential to reduce CO2 emissions by 20% to 30%.
UNIDO and SECO will use the Rio+20 Conference on Sustainable Development in June to highlight the importance of resource efficiency for improving firms’ competitiveness in developing countries, and together they will put forward a number of specific steps for implementation. UNIDO will also launch its Green Industry Platform in Rio, an initiative bringing together governmental and business stakeholders to promote “green industry” principles.
Address for enquiries
State Secretariat for Economic Affairs SECO
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CH-3003 Bern
Tel. +41 58 462 56 56
medien@seco.admin.ch
Publisher
State Secretariat for Economic Affairs
http://www.seco.admin.ch
