Jakarta, Indonesia, 21 – 22 May 2025: The SEA-MaP Regional Project convened the Technical Consultation Workshop for Component 1: Findings of Stocktaking Review and Gap Analysis in Jakarta, Indonesia. The Workshop was held as part of the implementation of four complementary workstreams under Component 1 of the Project, which aims to strengthen regional policies and institutions for plastics circularity in the ASEAN region. The four deliverables are namely: 

1. Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Handbook and Customized Toolkit; 
2. Best Practice Manual for the Development of Minimum Standards and Technical Requirements in Plastic Packaging and Labelling; 
3. Regional Guidebook on Standards for Responsible Plastic Waste Trade, Sorted Plastics and Recycled Plastics; and 
4. Regional Guidebook on Phasing Out Single-use Plastics (SUP).

The Workshop kicked off with two welcoming remarks, delivered by Mr. Ukrit Satapoomin, Deputy Director-General at the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Kingdom of Thailand; in his capacity as representative of Chair of the ASEAN Working Group on Coastal and Marine Environment (AWGCME) and Co-Chair of the SEA-MaP Project Steering Committee (PSC); as well as by Mr. Sayid Muhadhar, Director of Coastal and Marine Pollution and Degradation Control, Ministry of Environment Indonesia, as a representative of the host country. 

The remarks, which duly set the tone for the discussions that followed over the two days, highlighted the importance of working together towards sustainable solutions, and that knowledge products such as those being developed by the SEA-MaP through the project’s deliverables are much needed as these documents would serve as resources that demonstrate collective efforts, promote innovation, and further foster regional collaboration to improve policy and practice in the ASEAN region.

The Workshop featured interactive discussion sessions which focused on sharing progress updates and verifying collected data from the stocktaking and gap analyses conducted, particularly seeking feedback and guidance on its findings for the development of the four deliverables.  Participants also had the opportunity to share the current status of related efforts in their respective countries. The final outputs of these deliverables will be aligned with the needs of the ASEAN Member States. 

Participants included representatives from the ASEAN Member States (AMS), the ASEAN Secretariat, the Project Management Unit (PMU), Regional Implementation Support Unit (RISU), and the World Bank. The sessions were facilitated by the SEA-MaP consultants working on the four deliverables: Landbell Group, FratiniVergano, British Standards Institution (BSI) and Cyclos GmbH, respectively.