In his message on the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, Guterres said that thanks to the enforcement of this and other instruments, the ozone layer is now on the road to recovery.

He added that the cooperation fostered by the Montreal Protocol is exactly what is needed to address climate change, an existential threat to the world’s societies.

That Protocol is more than just an example of how multilateralism can and should work, it is an active tool to help fulfill the global vision for sustainable development, the Portuguese diplomat said.

Then, under the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, he added, nations committed to eliminating hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), powerful greenhouse gases used as refrigerants.

In 1994, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed September 16 as the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, coinciding with the signing, in 1987, of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer.

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