Awareness and product knowledge of service stakeholders involved in the importation and distribution of HCFC-22 in Botswana

This manuscript is an extract of chapter 4 from the study entitled 'An evaluation of the phase-out management systems of an ozone depleting substance HCFC-22 and its environmental implications in Botswana' (Kudoma 2020). The study was conducted in Gaborone (24°39'17'S 25°54'26.'E) and Francistown (21°10'15'S 27°30'27'E), cities of Botswana between 2017–2020. From the main study the period 2017–2020 was spent measuring the quarterly consumption of HCFC-22 of individual companies in order to ascertain whether all companies in the industry were making efforts to reduce the consumption of HCFC-22. The participants in the study were key stakeholders intricate in the importation, distribution and administration of ODS. These stakeholders were from the Botswana Unified Revenue Service (BURS), the Ministry of Environment, Wildlife and Tourism, and the BRACA. The Ministry of Environment, Wildlife and Tourism, is the key implementing body of the Botswana HPMP and houses the National Ozone Unit (NOU), which is the focal point and is mandated with the issuance of ODS import and export licences and coordinates the operational activities. The NOU is also liable for the administration of the nation's compliance strategy. The strategy include reporting, collecting ODS data, monitoring and promoting the country's compliance plans as agreed by the Multilateral fund (United Nations Industrial Developing Organisation (UNIDO) 2015, UNEP 2018c). The Department of Meteorological Services (DMS) under the Ministry of Environment, Wildlife and Tourism supervises the implementation of the integral phase-out of HCFC-22. The BURS, being the customs arm, is responsible for enforcing the quotas at the borders/ entry ports. The BRACA houses the refrigeration and air-conditioning sector and the end users of HCFC-22. The research considered all the companies that are registered and have permits to import ODSs because the population of companies is small, including all (N = 10) of them in the study provided more accurate data and increased the confidence interval in the survey results A census of (n = 9) HCFC-22-importing companies (suppliers) was also conducted. Probability sampling proportional to size was used to select a sample of respondents. A sum of 220 questionnaires was dispersed to the key respondents. Each of the groupings of respondents had a distinctive questionnaire designed for them. Out of 200 questionnaires only 159 of the returned were at least 75% completed and were used in the study. Those questionnaires that were partially completed were excluded. The 159 selected respondents were distributed as follows: 25 from the DMS, 9 from HCFC-22 importers, 60 from Customs officers and 65 HCFC-22 end user consumers (refrigeration industries/ technicians) from the importing companies. The probability sampling method allowed for each and every stratum of respondents to be equally represented, and the larger the strata the larger the sample taken.

Key stakeholder's perceptions, opinions and views of the awareness and product knowledge of HCFC-22 use and phase-out were assessed using semi structured interviews and questionnaires. The questionnaire had two sections where section A dealt with demographic data of respondents considered important for the analysis of the HCFC-22 knowledge and awareness. These data included personal variables such as level of education and years of service provision. These variables have implications for the HCFC-22 phase-out process and are used as background information to assess the level of awareness and product knowledge of service stakeholders in the importation and distribution of HCFC-22 in Botswana. Section B addressed respondents' awareness and knowledge of HCFC-22. The variables dealt with in section B were used to assess the stakeholders' level of HCFC-22 product knowledge and awareness in the phase-out plans.

Questionnaires were administered on a voluntary basis and on condition of anonymity through pick and drop at selected nine HCFC-22 importing companies, and 65 end user consumers who had an account with the companies selected in this study. Questionnaires were also distributed to randomly selected customs officers at the 15 purposefully selected Botswana border posts/entry ports. The researcher coordinated and supervised the distribution of questionnaires, making sure that they were completed correctly. Key informants interviewed were: the facility representatives from each of the nine companies, the National Ozone Officer (NOO) from the meteorological office and the principal customs officer from Botswana Unified Revenue Services (BURS). A specific interview guide was designed for each subject to be interviewed in line with their professional roles and information requirements. Qualitative information on stakeholders' perception of HCFC-22 product knowledge and awareness were drawn from the questionnaire through Likert questions. All the survey subjects were recorded during the same timeframe (January to June 2019). Consent was obtained and appointments were made prior to the subjects being interviewed. The requisite permissions and ethical considerations were secured from the Ministry of Environment, Tourism and Wildlife, companies licensed to import ODS, as well as BURS, requesting permission to conduct the research study. Further permission was sought in compliance with the University of South Africa ethical procedures.

Templates were created in the Statistical Package for Social Scientists (SPSS 24.0), Microsoft Excel and the R v 3.5.1 package to capture data from questionnaires and interviews. Factor analysis was used to test the validity of the questions for the constructs of product knowledge and HCFC-22 phase-out awareness. Factor analysis as a method which shows the covariation among a set of observed variables as a function of one or more latent constructs (Bandalos and Finney 2018). The validity of the constructs was analysed by extracting the first two components that measured 73% of the variation. Table 1 presents the results of the factor analysis for the constructs of product knowledge and HCFC-22 phase-out awareness. Most questions for the construct 'Phase-out awareness' were highly correlated with factor component 1. On the other hand, questions for the construct 'Product knowledge' were highly correlated with factor component 2. This means that the question items used to measure the constructs 'HCFC-22 phase-out awareness' and 'Product knowledge' measured what they intended to measure.

Likert scale statements on HCFC-22 phase-out awareness and product knowledge were checked for internal consistency using Cronbach's alpha a measure of reliability. The results were reliable and consistent for each component as shown on table 2

2.3.1. Measurement of level of product knowledge and awareness of HCFC-22 phase-out

The ANOVA test and Tukey's honestly significant difference (HSD) test were used to evaluate the level of HCFC-22 on the product knowledge and HCFC-22 phase-out awareness. An ANOVA test was then carried out to find out whether there were significant differences in the level of HCFC-22 phase-out awareness and product knowledge among the different stakeholders. Tukey's HSD was also computed with the aim of identifying specific pairs of stakeholders with significant mean differences in product knowledge and HCFC-22 phase-out awareness.

In section B of the questionnaire the possible responses to the relevant questions on knowledge and awareness were scaled from 1 to 7, with 1 referring to a low level of knowledge/awareness and 7 representing higher levels of knowledge. Based on stakeholders' responses to the Likert-type questions, an index range from 1 to 7, representing the average level of product knowledge and awareness of the phase-out for each stakeholder individual who participated in the survey, was computed (Tables A1-A4), using equations (1)–(2). The computations were necessary as they facilitated quantitative measurement and analysis of the level of product knowledge and awareness of the HCFC-22 phase-out.

Level of product knowledge index

$$\begin{eqnarray}&&P{I}_{i}=\,\displaystyle \frac{{\sum }_{{\boldsymbol{i}}=1{\boldsymbol{j}}=1,\,}^{{\boldsymbol{n}}}{{\boldsymbol{X}}}_{{\boldsymbol{i}},{\boldsymbol{j}}}}{{\boldsymbol{n}}}\end{eqnarray} \tag{ 1 }$$

Level of phase-out awareness index

$$\begin{eqnarray}&&\begin{array}{l}A{P}_{i}=\,\displaystyle \frac{{\sum }_{i=1,j=1,\,}^{n}{X}_{i,j}}{n}\\ 1\,\leqslant \,P{I}_{i},A{P}_{i}\,\leqslant 7\end{array}\end{eqnarray} \tag{ 2 }$$

Where $P{I}_{i}$ and $A{P}_{{\boldsymbol{i}}}$ are the index of product knowledge and awareness of phase-out of ith individual respectively.

${X}_{i,j}$ is ith individual response to the jth question and refers to the total number of questions asked to assess the level of product knowledge and awareness of the HCFC-22 phase-out.

2.3.2. Descriptive variables

Years of service provision in studied sector, is the total number of years stakeholders have spent dealing with HCFC-22 and other ODSs, and is a continuous variable. The more experienced the stakeholder is, the better informed he/she is assumed to be about the HCFC-22 phase-out awareness and the more he/she is likely to play a major role in implementation of the country's HPMP (UNEP 2017).

The results displayed in figure 1 indicate that the majority of HCFC-22 consumers (63%) and the DMS (52%) have been dealing with HCFC-22 and other ODSs for at most five years, while all HCFC-22 importers' length of ODS related service provision is more than six years. Customs officers (8%) and DMS (4%) have more than 21 years of dealing with ODS thus expected to have more knowledge of the HCFC-22 phase-out, since the phase-out of HCFC-22 started in 2009.

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Level of education as a continuous variable was measured in terms of stakeholders' years of formal schooling. In relation to level of education, the highest educational level completed was recorded. Overall, seven educational levels, as reflected in the questionnaire, were defined: respondents who had completed secondary school education (Ordinary level and Advanced level certification), respondents who had completed pre-university education (certificate or diploma) and respondents who had completed university education (graduate degree, master's degree and doctoral degree). The level of education achieved by a stakeholder is used as a proxy for increasing HCFC-22 phase-out awareness input. Education enables a person to read, write and understand diverse information including knowledge of HCFC-22 phase-out. From the analysis of the respondents' educational level, it may be seen that a small number had just a secondary school education only and these were consumers (13%). Twenty four percent of respondents had master's and doctoral degrees. Most of the respondents had pre-university education (certificate or diploma) (63%) and university education (graduate degree) (24%) (table 3). Stakeholders with higher levels of education are expected to know and understand the HCFC-22 phase-out process.

It is significant to assess stakeholders' HCFC-22 knowledge or phase-out awareness because, according to decision-making theory (Latifah et al 2011), people only form attitudes about technologies after they have attained information. Differences in stakeholders' mean levels of HCFC-22 knowledge and individual stakeholder levels of HCFC-22 knowledge were computed, table 4 shows the mean and the associated confidence interval for the mean on stakeholders' overall level of HCFC-22 knowledge.

The computed overall mean level of HCFC-22 knowledge of 4.15 shows a moderate level of HCFC-22 knowledge (4.15 out of 7). The computed 95% confidence interval for the mean is between 4.06 and 4.24. Considering that scale maximum level is 7, the overall average level of product knowledge is relatively moderate. Stakeholders possess a moderate level of HCFC-22 knowledge, probably because some among them are not direct users of the product and may lack awareness. For the success of the phase-out management plan, it is essential for stakeholders to have HCFC-22 knowledge. A comparison of the level of HCFC-22 knowledge with related environmental problems, such as climate change was worth noting as HCFC-22 is a potent greenhouse gas with high GWP which result in climate change (Wang et al 2016). In a study on consumers' related knowledge about climate change in Switzerland (Tobler et al 2012) found out that people had several misconceptions about climate change although their knowledge related to CO₂ seems to have increased compared to previous studies (Henderson-Sellers,1990, Read et al 1994).In a similar study, Fischer et al (2019) assessed the accuracy of German citizens' confidence in their climate change knowledge and results showed that their climate change knowledge was around half of what it could be based on the accuracy of their knowledge. This outcome suggests that the confidence of German nationalities in their climate change knowledge is unreasonably uncertain given their actual knowledge. Kudoma and Tekere (2021) assessed the stakeholder's perceptions of the environmental impact of HCFC-22 phase-out and found out that 97% were of the view that phase-out of HCFC-22 had a positive impact on the environment; it reduces HCFC-22 emissions, thereby reducing ozone depletion and global warming effects.

The differences in the levels of HCFC-22 knowledge among the four key stakeholders in the implementation of the HCFC-22 phase-out strategy were examined and findings are presented in figure 2. The dark line in the box plots signifies the median value. The bottom and the top of the boxes signify the lower and upper quartiles respectively (Hinlo et al 2017).

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*The bars extend to 1.5 times the height of the box and the circle outside the bar of the DMS is marked as an outlier, having more than three times the height of the box plot.

The computed medians for customs officers and the DMS officers are higher at 4.14 and 4.0 respectively than the medians for companies (3.73) and consumers (3.64). This indicates that customs officers and the DMS officers have higher levels of HCFC-22 knowledge than those from companies and consumers. However, the customs officers have the most HCFC-22 phase-out knowledge of all the other stakeholders seemingly due to that they are responsible for checking and identifying all the ODSs that pass through the entry points for compliance with regulations. The conducted analysis shows that 96% of customs officers knew more about the legal and legislative restrictions for importation of HCFC-22 equipment in Botswana compared to DMS (75%), companies (65%) and consumers (53%). The DMS respondents were second in the HCFC-22 phase-out knowledge levels, the department is charged with coordinating the country's efforts to protect the ozone layer. DMS facilitates ODS phase-out and offering advice and support to the industry and the services sector on the different phase-out options for ODS, as well as presenting awareness programmes directed at the end users.

Consumers have the lowest HCFC-22 refrigerant phase-out knowledge. Clearly, there is a disconnection in HCFC-22 phase-out knowledge between the technical stakeholders of the HCFC-22 phase-out process (customs and the DMS), who should dispense HCFC-22 knowledge, and the non-technical stakeholders (end users). It is expected that there must be conscientisation, capacitation, cooperation and compliance of all key stakeholders in the entire HCFC-22 phase-out plan in order for any success to be achieved. The identified knowledge gaps do not bode well for the successful implementation of the HCFC-22 phase-out plan. UNEP (2019b) asserts that HCFC-22 product awareness influences market and consumer choice, and a good consumer communication strategy is critical to increasing the market penetration of more efficient products.

The current position is consistent with the finding by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) (2010) that key stakeholders in developing countries generally possess limited awareness of the issues or actions required on the higher or technical level to address HCFC phase-out. This, they add, is in turn a function of low levels of phase-out awareness programmes by companies that import ODSs. This is an area in which technical stakeholders should improve the quality and quantity of their awareness-raising efforts.

The mean levels and standard deviations of product knowledge of sector stakeholders were computed and the results are presented in table 5.

The computed results (table 5) show that all stakeholders have moderate level of HCFC-22 knowledge, with customs officers (4.24) having the highest mean level of HCFC-22 knowledge followed by the DMS (3.83), companies (3.82) and consumers (3.61), since customs officers are responsible for checking and monitoring all ODS at entry points. Companies and the DMS have almost the same levels of HCFC-22 knowledge; this is commendable in light of their roles. As end users, consumers/customers are expected to have a deeper understanding of the product direct use HCFC-22 and they are also directly affected by its phase-out. Although the results in table 5 show moderate HCFC-22 knowledge, consumers possess the least mean knowledge (3.61). Nevertheless, with adequate training and awareness programmes, one would expect all stakeholders to possess higher levels of HCFC-22 knowledge. This suggests that current awareness-raising efforts and initiatives are inadequate. Correspondingly, this lack of consumer awareness is identified by the UNEP (2019b) as one of the main barriers to the successful phase-out of HCFC-22s. In particular, UNEP (2019b) points out that consumers lack information on the most energy efficient and environmentally friendly alternatives to HCFC-22 in line with the Kigali Amendment. Ideally, information dissemination should take place in continuously and also be present at the point of purchase when customers are at their most receptive. In addition, it should be multi-tiered in order to reach retailers and installers.

The stakeholder differences in mean level of product knowledge were further analysed using ANOVA and Tukey's HSD tests for mean differences. The differences in the mean levels of HCFC-22 product knowledge among the stakeholders were significant at a 5% level of significance (F = 12.52; Pr (> F) = 3.49e^-10). The ANOVA test, as shown in table 6, indicated that there were significant differences among the stakeholders on level of HCFC-22 product knowledge. The analysis undertaken so far indicated that customs officers have higher levels of knowledge compared to other stakeholders. These differences in levels of HCFC-22 knowledge may have a negative effect on the success of the HCFC-22 phase-out management plan.

A multiple pairwise test of mean difference was carried out using Tukey HSD to identify specific stakeholders with significant mean differences in level of knowledge, and the results are presented in table 7.

At the 5% level of significance, table 7 shows that there are significant differences in mean levels of HCFC-22 knowledge between DMS and customs, as well as between consumers and customs. Customs officers have high levels of product knowledge as compared to companies, the DMS officials and consumers. This pairwise test shows that the customs officers' higher level of HCFC-22 knowledge is significantly different from the mean levels of HCFC-22 knowledge of other key stakeholders. There are, however, no significant differences in mean levels of HCFC-22 knowledge between DMS officials and companies, between consumers and companies and between consumers and DMS officials. Although consumers, the DMS and companies have different mean levels of HCFC-22 knowledge, the difference is not significant.

A similar study in Mauritius by Dreepaul (2017) produced contrasting results to the current one, with stakeholders in the market being more conversant with the issues of HCFC and CFCs refrigerants and the desirability of alternative natural refrigerants, as well as with ozone depletion-related problems. Repair and maintenance companies were more knowledgeable about HCFC than self-employed private mechanics, while technicians, often trained in the field itself, were found wanting in the procedures and precautions for the retrofitting of new refrigerants (Dreepaul 2017). The reasons for the disparity with the current study could be the inadequate training and awareness programmes offered to RAC technicians in the informal sector.

Besides product knowledge, stakeholders were also expected to have a deeper level of the HCFC-22 phase-out awareness, as described by the Botswana HPMP. In the Botswana HPMP, awareness of key stakeholders on HCFC-22 phase-out was one of the key deliverables (UNIDO 2015). The idea was that deeper awareness of the HCFC-22 phase-out plan among stakeholders would help Botswana reduce consumption of HCFC-22. The level of HCFC-22 phase-out awareness by the participants was measured in a similar manner to the level of HCFC-22 knowledge, using an index computed based on survey questions related to the awareness of HCFC-22 phase-out. Table 8 shows the overall mean level of awareness of HCFC-22 phase-out.

The computed mean level of 3.25 showed a moderate level of HCFC-22 awareness (3.25 out of 7), while the 95% confidence interval for the mean is between 3.17 and 3.34. Considering that scale maximum level is 7, the overall average level of HCFC-22 phase-out awareness is averagely moderate. This is essential for the success of the HCFC-22 phase-out. In fact, the UNEP (2019b) cites lack of consumer awareness as one of the main barriers to the successful phase-out of HCFC-22; the corollary to this is that consumer awareness is an essential ingredient for successful HCFC-22 phase-out. Considering this authoritative assessment by the UNEP of the importance of consumer awareness, moderate awareness by this critical stakeholder constituency seems inadequate and, quite clearly, lots more work needs to be done to improve the levels of awareness. In fact, this study suggests that awareness of HCFC-22 phase-out must be high among all stakeholders without exception in order for the HPMP to register success. The particular case of Mauritius amply demonstrates the importance of consumer awareness, with alternative HFC refrigerants such as R134A, R404A, R407C and R410A predominating in that country's RAC sector, and HCFC-22 use steadily on the decline in limited applications like split AC units and large industrial and commercial applications (Dreepaul 2017). In reviewing the progress of Bahrain, India, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United Arab Emirates, the UNEP (2019c) notes that stakeholders' participation in those countries has proven effective in providing them with a sense of ownership of HCFC-22 phase-out projects and in raising awareness among end users and industry players.

Comparisons of the level of HCFC-22 phase-out awareness of the individual stakeholders, as shown in figure 3, reveals that consumers have the highest median (3.54) level of awareness of HCFC-22 compared to the other stakeholders. It is ideal for consumers to have the highest level of awareness of HCFC-22 phase-out because they are the direct users of the product and are also directly affected by the phase-out.

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Consumers are followed by companies with a median (3.11) and customs officers had (3.06) for the HCFC-22 phase-out awareness Customs officers and companies have an almost similar median of awareness (3.06 and 3.11 respectively) and the DMS has the lowest median (3.03) of HCFC-22 phase-out awareness. The fact that consumers and companies display higher levels of awareness of the HCFC-22 phase-out than other stakeholders may be reasonable considering that the phase-out directly affects them. The DMS has the lowest median and third quartile despite the fact that they are key implementers of the HCFC-22 phase-out.

When asked if Botswana is mandated to phase-out HCFC-22, 30% of all the stakeholders strongly agreed, 6% somewhat agreed, 44% agreed and 14% were neutral. This means most stakeholders (80%) are aware of the mandatory HCFC-22 phase-out. However, the stakeholders' phase-out awareness differed when asked about the specific elements of the phase-out: about 62% of customs officers, 57% of DMS officers, 31% of consumers and 11% of companies strongly disagreed that HCFC-22 quota allocations, HCFC-22 licensing and legislative restrictions were in place. About 75% of all stakeholders were not aware of the existence of the Botswana HPMP.

The UNEP (2010) posited that raising awareness of the HCFC-22 phase-out with company owners permits them to make informed investment decisions and contribute to accelerated phase-out. However, it is essential that all parties possess higher levels of HCFC-22 phase-out awareness in order for success to be realised. With adequate training and awareness activities, it would be expected that such differences between stakeholders are minimal and insignificant. The differences in stakeholders' level of HCFC-22 phase-out awareness reflects on the different training and awareness programmes received by stakeholders, which results in some stakeholders being more informed than others. Study results indicate that 68% of customs officers received training and ODS awareness from the NOU. About 65% of consumers revealed that they had discussed HCFC-22 with their suppliers (companies). The UNIDO (2015) revealed that BRACA is responsible for sharing information among stakeholders on ODS phase-out and coordinating the country's training programmes in conjunction with the NOO. There have also been training challenges relating to specific stakeholder groups. For example, the UNEP (2019a) laments that in Botswana it has been difficult to gather informal RAC technicians. The growth of BRACA has also been hampered by the fact that most members come from the private companies who are also on busy schedules, which adversely affects training and phase-out awareness initiatives and programmes. HCFC-22 phase-out awareness activities which target all stakeholders would help increase their support for HCFC-22 phase-out. Hence, the mean level of the HCFC-22 phase-out awareness of each individual stakeholder was computed and the results are presented in table 9:

Table 9 also shows that the overall mean level of HCFC-22 phase-out awareness was moderate among all stakeholders. Consumers had highest overall mean level of HCFC-22 phase-out awareness followed by companies, customs and DMS respectively. Consumers and companies are directly affected by the HCFC-22 phase-out and as such they acquire deeper knowledge of the HCFC-22 phase-out plan as compared to the other stakeholders. Since they are the targeted stakeholders in as far as the reduction of HCFC-22 consumption levels is concerned, higher awareness levels of the HCFC-22 phase-out for this group may help in achieving a successful HCFC-22 phase-out. In addition, suppliers of HCFC-22 are required to discuss the HCFC-22 phase-out with end consumers as a requirement of the ODS regulation (Government of Botswana GoB (2014)). Survey results indicate that some companies (45%) discuss phase-out with their customers. On the other hand 65% of end-user consumers indicated that they have discussed the phase-out of HCFC-22 with their suppliers. This also contributes to consumers and companies having higher HCFC-22 medians of awareness. However, since DMS and customs officers are responsible for the implementation and enforcement of the HCFC-22 phase-out management plan, they are also expected to have higher HCFC-22 phase-out awareness levels. In other words, their awareness of the HCFC-22 phase-out plan should not be different from other stakeholders, considering the critical role that they play in the implementation of the Botswana HPMP. Participants from the DMS were asked about the extent to which they comply with and enforce the ODS regulations as contained in the Act and Botswana HPMP. Most DMS respondents (76.5%) believed that their level of compliance with implementation and enforcement of specific key provisions of Act and the Botswana HPMP was moderate and only 23.5% believe that their level of compliance was low. This also explains why the DMS has the lowest mean level (3.03) of HCFC-22 phase-out awareness. Interviews conducted with HCFC-22 importers and NOO (70%) revealed that frequency of awareness-raising initiatives might not be adequate.

The differences in the mean levels of HCFC-22 phase-out awareness among the stakeholders were significant at the 5% level of significance (F = 10.64, Pr (> F) = 2.12e⁻⁶). The ANOVA test, as shown in table 10, indicates that there were significant differences among the stakeholders on the level of HCFC-22 phase-out awareness.

These results show that the knowledge possessed by the key stakeholders concerning the HCFC-22 phase-out plan was significantly different and could contribute to differences in the effective implementation of HCFC-22 phase-out.

Table 11 shows a Tukey's HSD multiple pairwise test result of the pairs of stakeholders, which revealed significant differences in level of awareness of the HCFC-22 phase-out.

The results of Tukey's HSD multiple pairwise test revealed that there were significant differences in awareness of the HCFC-22 phase-out between consumers and customs officers and between Consumers and DMS. However, no other significant differences were found between pairs of the following stakeholders: Consumers and Companies; Companies and Customs; DMS and Companies; DMS and Customs. This means that consumers had significantly higher levels of awareness of the HCFC-22 phase-out than customs officers. This should be a cause for concern because customs officers are responsible for processing of the importation of HCFC-22 at the country's entry points/border posts. Hence, they should have more extensive knowledge of the phase-out so that they can effectively implement the HCFC-22 phase-out import control regulations. There are lessons to be gleaned elsewhere on the critical role of training in the implementation of HCFC-22 phase-out plans. One is the Government of Cuba which, reports the UNEP (2019d), through the training of technicians, technical classrooms for the RAC sector, and public awareness raising programmes on the protection of the ozone layer, has made progress in implementing the phase-out of HCFCs and has achieved the first reduction goal (10% of the baseline). Similarly, Trinidad and Tobago, having effectively achieved stage I of the country's HPMP, is currently developing stage II of its HPMP. The progress made is largely attributed to its participation in global and regional network meetings, training sessions and high-level meetings for the promotion of MP activities in the country (UNEP 2019d).

However there remains a gap in stakeholder engagement when it comes to the private sector. Interviews conducted here with HCFC-22 importers (67%) and National Ozone Officer (NOO) suggested that there were coordination gaps and challenges in relation to meeting private company operators, due to scheduling disharmony between their work plans and the engagement meetings.