A pact for change
Following the event in Mumbai, and the prioritises identified within the forum, it was clear further action was needed to address the plastic waste problem in India. The top priority identified was the need for a new industry body focused on plastics, to lead projects on behalf of its members and drive change. On the back on this, we engaged with WRAP, a UK-based global environmental NGO, and a pioneer in establishing ‘Plastic Pacts’ globally. A ‘Plastic Pact’ involves bringing together businesses, governments, and NGOs to set targets to reduce, reuse, and recycle plastics across the entire plastic value chain. WRAP had prior experience in successfully setting up plastic pacts in the UK, Canada, South Africa, Chile, Australia & New Zealand and supporting in many other countries, but an Indian Plastic Pact had not yet been attempted.
In September 2021 the India Plastics Pact (IPP) was established with funding from UKRI Global, and since then we at Stewart Investors have provided crucial funding to support its development and operational needs. The India Plastics Pact is led and managed by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)5 and aims to overcome barriers to circularity in plastic packaging through ambitious, time-bound targets, uniting businesses, governments, NGOs, and other stakeholders towards a national framework for sustainable plastic use.