A courtesy visit to the newly elected Governor of Toyama Prefecture, Mr Hachiro NITTA, was paid by the NOWPAP Coordinator, Dr Yegor Volovik. The meeting was held on January 18, 2021, at the Toyama Prefecture.
The visit was organised by and closely coordinated with the International Affairs Division of the Toyama Prefecture's Government and was also attended by senior officials from the General Policy Bureau and Environmental Policy Division.
In his speech, The Governor greeted NOWPAP Coordinator and emphasized high importance of cooperation between NOWPAP and Toyama Prefecture. Toyama Prefecture supports various environmental projects through its Environmental Policy Division and the Northwest Pacific Regional Environmental Cooperation Centre (NPEC). NPEC is also hosting the Special Monitoring and Coastal Environment Assessment Regional Activity Centre (CEARAC) of NOWPAP. The Toyama Prefecture's specific attention is paid to several high-priority programmes, like abatement of pollution, including a ban of the provision of free plastic shopping bags, which Toyama Prefecture had introduced over ten years ago. Mr NITTA expressed his interest in continuing and further strengthening cooperation with NOWPAP.
In his reply speech, NOWPAP Coordinator thanked Mr NITTA for the warm welcome and expressed his high appreciation to the Governor personally and all other high-level officials of the Government of Toyama Prefecture, who made this meeting possible. Dr Volovik specifically mentioned several NOWPAP schemes being acknowledged not only in the NOWPAP region but also far beyond, specifically within the UNEP’s Regional Seas programmes worldwide.
After the official speeches, in an open discussion between Mr NITTA and Dr Volovik, some other issues were discussed, including the current state of COVID-19 pandemic, extreme weather events, and day-to-day life in Toyama City.
At the end of the meeting, Mr NITTA presented a gift of honour to NOWPAP as a sign of goodwill and cooperation.
Mr Hachiro NITTA was elected as the Governor of Toyama Prefecture on October 25, 2020, and he will serve four years until 2024.
