This blog post is based on the presentations and remarks by Mihaela Paun, Programme Management Officer, Agrifood and Health Unit, UNEP, delivered at the GGKP webinar Making Data Work: Applying GMP and POPs Inventories for Evidence-Based Policy in NIPs, held on 30 January 2026.
Developing robust National Implementation Plans (NIPs) under the Stockholm Convention is anchored in reliable Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) inventory data. Information on production, use, emissions, stockpiles and contaminated sites enables the development of actionable implementation frameworks.
Drawing on UNEP’s experience working closely with Parties to the Stockholm Convention – together with the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions Secretariat, regional centres and other stakeholders – inventory processes help ensure that national action is grounded in structured, systematic assessment.
Importance of POPs inventory data
POPs persist in the environment, travel long distances, bioaccumulate and pose serious risks to human health and ecosystems. Addressing them requires a strong evidence base.
Under the Stockholm Convention, POPs inventories are foundational tools for generating that evidence. Such inventories allow countries to identify sources and quantities of POPs, track trends and assess progress toward elimination. They also underpin compliance and reporting obligations.
Importantly, inventories are strategic instruments, not just technical exercises. When properly developed, they enable policymakers to move from assumptions to evidence-based priorities, from isolated actions to coordinated national strategies. Reliable inventory data anchors the development and updating NIPs, ensuring they are actionable frameworks grounded in national realities.
As Paun highlighted: “POPs inventories are one of the foundational tools provided under the Stockholm Convention framework and related guidance. They allow countries to identify sources and quantities of POPs, track their evolution over time and assess progress towards elimination. While inventories are often perceived as purely technical exercises, they in fact play an essential strategic role.”
POPs inventory scope
A POPs inventory is not merely a list of chemicals. It is a structured national assessment covering pesticides, industrial POPs, unintentional releases, waste streams and contaminated sites. It addresses production, use, emissions, stockpiles and legacy contamination.
Well-designed inventories function as dynamic tools that reflect the real national situation. They can reveal hidden stockpiles, POPs still circulating in products and markets, and diffuse emissions from sectors that may otherwise escape regulatory attention, including informal waste activities.
By transforming dispersed data into a coherent picture, inventories generate policy-relevant insights that might otherwise remain invisible. They provide the clarity needed for informed decision-making.
Enhancing NIP development through inventory data
Inventory data plays a central role in strengthening NIP development and updates. It establishes a baseline: which POPs are present, in what quantities and in which sectors. This baseline allows countries to set realistic targets and timelines, allocate resources strategically and prioritize interventions where they will have the greatest impact.
Inventories also ensure the accuracy and completeness of NIP updates when new chemicals are listed under the Convention. They provide the evidence needed to integrate newly listed POPs into national strategies, keeping NIPs aligned with evolving obligations.
In addition, the inventory process fosters inter-sectoral coordination. POPs management spans the environment, agriculture, industry, waste, health and customs authorities. Conducting inventories often catalyzes national dialogue, strengthening governance coherence across institutions. Robust inventory data also supports stronger national reporting and more meaningful aggregation at the global level, reinforcing transparency and collective progress.
Supporting NIP implementation
The real impact of NIPs lies in implementation, and inventory data drives action.
Inventories identify priority sectors and actors requiring technical assistance, regulatory attention, or financial investment. For example, they may reveal PCB stockpiles in the energy sector, or open burning in informal waste systems.
Inventory findings guide the deployment of Best Available Techniques and Best Environmental Practices (BAT/BEP), ensuring interventions are targeted and proportionate. They also inform monitoring and surveillance programmes, establishing baselines to track exposure trends and measure progress over time.
From a financing perspective, updated inventories are indispensable. Clear baselines strengthen funding proposals to the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and other partners, improving countries’ ability to mobilize resources for disposal, remediation and regulatory improvements.
Shaping regulatory frameworks
The true value of inventories lies in translating technical data into policy-relevant action. Inventory findings inform bans and restrictions, emission limits, environmental standards, waste management guidelines, import–export controls and occupational health measures.
They also enhance coherence across related multilateral environmental agreements, including the Basel Convention, the Rotterdam Convention and the Minamata Convention on Mercury. Alignment across frameworks helps avoid duplication, maximize synergies, and modernize national chemicals and waste governance.
Country benefits
Many countries still face persistent challenges in sustaining high-quality POPs inventories. Data collection may be fragmented, particularly in informal sectors, while analytical and laboratory capacity can be limited. Methodologies are not always harmonized, financial resources constrain monitoring and coordination across ministries may remain weak. Identifying POPs in complex products such as plastics or electronics adds further difficulty. These gaps highlight the need for continued capacity-building and stronger governance.
Yet where these challenges are addressed, the benefits are significant. Leveraging POPs inventory data strengthens compliance with obligations under the Stockholm Convention, supports evidence-based policy design and improves the prioritization of financial and technical resources.
Inventories enhance enforcement capacity by improving coordination among regulators, customs authorities and industry, while supporting transparent reporting to the Conference of the Parties, and foster stronger engagement with academia, civil society and the private sector.
They also improve public risk communication. Up-to-date inventories help governments communicate clearly about risks, progress and remaining challenges, building trust and accountability. When regularly updated, inventories become powerful levers for both national action and international cooperation.
Emerging opportunities
Looking ahead, significant opportunities exist to strengthen POPs inventories and expand their impact.
Standardization and methodological harmonization can improve comparability across countries and over time. Digital and geospatial tools — including mapping of contaminated sites, stockpile tracking and waste-flow visualization — can enhance efficiency and accuracy.
Strengthening multi-stakeholder partnerships is essential, given the cross-sectoral nature of POPs. Enhanced South–South cooperation can further support peer learning and shared solutions. Linking inventories to broader policy frameworks, including circular economy and sustainable consumption initiatives, can also unlock systemic solutions that move beyond disposal toward prevention.
Making POPs inventory data work means placing evidence at the centre of policy. When data drives decisions, NIPs evolve from static plans into living instruments capable of delivering measurable outcomes.
To learn more about the Global NIP Update project, visit Global NIP Update | Green Policy Platform.
For a deeper dive into the GGKP webinar Making Data Work: Applying GMP and POPs Inventories for Evidence-Based Policy in NIPs, you can access the full recordings and materials here.
This article was curated by Mark Schulman, Content Editor, GGKP, and reviewed by Soomin Bae, Project Support Consultant, GGKP.
