The Montreal Protocol
The most successful multilateral environmental agreement in history.
A brief history
Adopted on 16 September 1987, the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer is a global agreement to protect the Earth's ozone layer by phasing out the production and consumption of ozone-depleting substances (ODS). It is the only UN treaty ratified by all 197 UN member states.
Key milestones
1985 — Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer adopted. 1987 — Montreal Protocol signed. 1993 — Seychelles ratifies the Protocol. 2009 — Universal ratification achieved. 2016 — Kigali Amendment adopted to phase down HFCs. 2019 — Seychelles ratifies the Kigali Amendment.
Seychelles' commitments
As an Article 5 (developing) country, Seychelles follows the Montreal Protocol's phase-out schedule with extended timelines. The country has successfully phased out CFCs, halons, carbon tetrachloride, methyl chloroform, and methyl bromide. Current focus is on the HCFC phase-out (freeze achieved 2013, 35% reduction by 2020) and the HFC phase-down under the Kigali Amendment.