The nanosafety and ethics strategic plan of Thailand in the context of the strategic approach to international chemicals management

Abstract

Since 2006, the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management is a policy framework to promote chemical safety around the world. In 2009, safety of nanomaterials has been recognised as an Emerging Policy Issue, and awareness to it has improved in the last two decades. Various countries act as pioneers in their respective geographic regions. This article presents the Nanosafety and Ethics Strategic Plan of Thailand and its implementation since 2012, when on the third International Conference on Chemicals Management nanosafety was amended as emerging policy issue. In 2015, an intersessional process was started to negotiate a new post-2020 regime. This process was delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic, so many countries have not yet implemented nanosafety in their national legislations. Therefore, it is important to keep nanosafety in the post-2020 context of the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management as an issue of concern without going a second time through an elaborate evaluation process again.