Multilateral Environmental Agreements on the Ground – Lessons from Supporting Implementation of the Montreal Protocol

The report examines the implementation of the Montreal Protocol through the lens of the Swedish Ozone Layer Protection programme (OLP), identifying country ownership, capacity building, and stakeholder participation as critical governance factors for success. It argues that a shift from top-down regulation to bottom-up governance is necessary for sustainable national implementation of MEAs.

• Country ownership is a critical determinant of success in the national implementation of the Montreal Protocol, with more effective phase-outs occurring when countries prepare their own strategies rather than relying on external consultants.
• The position and mandate of the national ozone unit within the government hierarchy significantly impact implementation; units in higher positions possess more political clout, while those in lower positions may be less burdened by other duties.
• Current incentive structures for implementing agencies and the Multilateral Fund (MLF) often hinder country ownership because success is measured by the volume and number of projects rather than long-term sustainability or actual outcomes.
• Capacity building is most effective when integrated into existing regular training institutes and vocational schools rather than through one-off, short-term projects.
• Regional networking between national ozone units and customs officers has proven to be an effective method for curbing the illegal trade of ozone depleting substances (ODS) by facilitating information exchange and shipment tracking.
• Early and thorough stakeholder participation, particularly with the refrigeration servicing sector, is essential for the legitimacy and effectiveness of ODS phase-out plans, as enforcement is otherwise nearly impossible for small and medium companies.
• The OLP found that a longer project planning phase is more likely to secure full stakeholder participation during later implementation phases.
• The lessons from the Montreal Protocol regarding country ownership, capacity building, and stakeholder involvement are applicable to other chemicals-related MEAs, such as the Stockholm Convention, Basel Convention, Rotterdam Convention, and the Kyoto Protocol.
• Implementation of the Kyoto Protocol is expected to be more challenging than the Montreal Protocol because it requires systemic societal changes to energy and transport systems rather than the marginal substitution of substances.

APA

Persson, L., Persson, Å., & Nilsson, M. (2007). Multilateral Environmental Agreements on the Ground – Lessons from Supporting Implementation of the Montreal Protocol. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Policy-institutions/multilateral_environmental_agreements_montreal_protocol.pdf

Chicago

Persson, Linn, Åsa Persson, and Måns Nilsson. Multilateral Environmental Agreements on the Ground – Lessons from Supporting Implementation of the Montreal Protocol. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2007. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Policy-institutions/multilateral_environmental_agreements_montreal_protocol.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Persson |first1=Linn |last2=Persson |first2=Åsa |last3=Nilsson |first3=Måns |title=Multilateral Environmental Agreements on the Ground – Lessons from Supporting Implementation of the Montreal Protocol |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=2007 |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Policy-institutions/multilateral_environmental_agreements_montreal_protocol.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{persson2007multilateral, author = {Persson, Linn and Persson, Åsa and Nilsson, Måns}, title = {{Multilateral Environmental Agreements on the Ground – Lessons from Supporting Implementation of the Montreal Protocol}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2007}, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Policy-institutions/multilateral_environmental_agreements_montreal_protocol.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }