Latest Developments in the Global Framework on Chemicals (GFC)

International discussions and institutional preparations are advancing toward the implementation of the Global Framework on Chemicals (GFC), a global framework for chemical management. In May 2024, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) adopted a declaration of support endorsed by its 38 member countries.

In June 2026, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) convened the ninth meeting of the Open-Ended Ad Hoc Group on Measuring Progress (OEAHGMI-9; hereafter, the ninth expert meeting) to review proposed indicators for tracking GFC progress. UNEP projects that the global chemical industry will expand to roughly 10 trillion USD by 2030, while the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that chemical pollution caused more than two million deaths in 2019. In response, countries and international organizations are advancing efforts under the GFC framework, including regulatory development, information generation and sharing, and strengthened industry management. Work to establish a dedicated fund and develop progress indicators is moving forward.

In November 2026, UNEP will host the first international conference (IC1) in Switzerland, where governments and industry will focus on shifting chemical management across the full life cycle into the implementation phase.

Background and Context: What the GFC Is and Why It Is Needed Now

The GFC was adopted in September 2023 at the fifth session of the International Conference on Chemicals Management (ICCM5), held in Bonn, Germany, as the successor to SAICM (the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management), established in 2006. It is a voluntary international framework—not a treaty—bringing together governments, industry, civil society, and academia to work toward a planet free from harm caused by chemicals and waste.

An estimated 40,000 to 60,000 industrial chemicals are currently in use worldwide. Complex challenges have become increasingly visible, including ecological impacts from pesticides, the persistence of substances such as PFAS, and the accumulation of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in aquatic environments. Existing international treaties focus on specific substances or processes, leaving gaps in coverage and shortcomings in implementation. The GFC was therefore established as a comprehensive framework addressing the entire life cycle of chemicals and enabling collaboration among multiple stakeholders.

Indicator Proposals Presented at the Ninth Expert Meeting

At the ninth expert meeting, proposed GFC indicators were categorized into those already agreed upon and those requiring further consideration. The agreed indicators largely cover areas that are relatively straightforward to measure, such as national regulatory development and implementation status. In contrast, indicators requiring continued discussion tend to involve areas where institutional design and operational systems still need to be developed.

Examples of Indicator Proposals

• A1.2 Countries with controls for lead in paint
• A1.5 Number of countries with legislation in place to manage industrial and consumer chemicals
• B3.1 Number of countries with a PRTR (implementing international standards for PRTRs, including parties to the Kyiv Protocol on PRTRs, countries implementing OECD standards for PRTRs, or equivalent.)
• D3.1 Number of companies reporting on dependencies, impacts, risks, opportunities, and on human health and the environment
• D3.3 Number of financial institutions that include chemicals and waste in risk assessment, decision-making, policies, practices or disclosures
• D4.4 Number of stakeholders implementing green and sustainable procurement programs that explicitly prioritize safer and more sustainable chemical alternatives (The description of indicator D4.4 is cited from the Ministry of the Environment of Japan’s summary of the OEAHGMI‑9 indicator proposals, as UNEP has not yet published the full indicator list in English.)

Outlook: The First International Conference (IC1) in November 2026

UNEP will convene the first GFC International Conference (IC1) in Geneva, Switzerland, from November 16 to 20, 2026. The conference will center on three main themes:

• Tracking progress: Adoption of indicators and transparent reporting of national implementation
• Accelerating action: Concrete implementation measures in key sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, and waste management
• Investing for impact: Mobilizing finance through funds and public–private partnerships, and promoting innovation

International expectations regarding product-level chemical disclosure, policies for adopting safer alternatives, and risk management across the value chain are likely to be clarified at IC1.

EnviX’s Comment: The GFC as an International Framework for Chemicals

Within global environmental governance, the GFC serves as a new framework that fills longstanding gaps in the chemicals domain. In climate policy, the 1992 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change provides the foundation for the 2015 Paris Agreement. In nature policy, the 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity underpins the 2022 Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF). By contrast, the chemicals domain has been governed by a set of treaties—Basel, PIC, POPs, and Minamata—each addressing specific substances or processes, without a comprehensive framework covering the full life cycle.

The GFC is designed to fill this structural gap. It treats chemical production, use, products, and waste as an integrated whole and assumes collaboration among governments, industry, civil society, and academia. Its 28 targets span the core areas of chemical management, including regulatory development, information generation and sharing, responsible industry practices, adoption of safer alternatives, and financial mobilization. As such, it functions as an overarching policy framework that complements existing treaties.

In the broader trajectory of international environmental policy, chemicals are emerging as a third pillar alongside climate and nature. UNEP’s designation of chemical pollution as a “global crisis,” WHO’s quantification of health impacts, and OECD’s formal declaration of support for GFC implementation collectively signal that international organizations and national governments are beginning to treat chemicals as a priority issue. IC1 in 2026 will mark a turning point as international cooperation in the chemicals domain moves into the implementation phase.

For companies, chemical management will increasingly be positioned as an international expectation on par with climate and nature. Areas where some companies have already taken action—product-level chemical disclosure, adoption of safer alternatives, and value-chain risk management—are likely to become standardized under the GFC framework. The GFC represents a shift from chemical management as a “voluntary initiative” to a “globally expected operational requirement.”

Related Links

• UNEP, “9th meeting of the open-ended ad hoc group on measurability and indicators”
  https://www.unep.org/events/online-event/9th-meeting-open-ended-ad-hoc-group-measurability-and-indicators
• UNEP, “The Global Framework on Chemicals – First International Conference (IC1)”
  https://www.unep.org/global-framework-chemicals/international-conference-1
• UNEP, “Global Framework on Chemicals”
  https://www.unep.org/global-framework-chemicals
• UNEP, “How a global agreement is aiming to tame chemical pollution”
  https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/how-global-agreement-aiming-tame-chemical-pollution