UNDP-UNEP Poverty-Environment Initiative

Basic facts of the PEI in Nepal

• The PEI country programme in Nepal was signed in February 2010.  The programme will run over a period of 35 months until December 2012.
• The PEI programme in Nepal will support poverty reduction and inclusive development by integrating climate and environmental concerns and opportunities of the poor into development planning and economic-decision making.
• The programe is not a stand-alone project, but has been designed to provide targeted support to ongoing programmes, in particular, the Institutional Strengthening Support to National Planning Commission (NPC) and the Local Government Community Development Programme (LGCDP) of Ministry of Local development (MLD).
• The programme framework complements the project documents of the two existing projects: Strengthening Planning and Monitoring Capacity (SPMC) of NPC and LGCDP of MLD, where PEI activities will be included in their annual work plans (AWPs).
• The main national partners include the National Planning Commission and the Ministry of Local Development.

Activities of PEI Phase 1

• Provide technical support for the integration of pro-poor environmental measures in the next national periodic plan.
• Undertake analyses, e.g. economic analysis, ecosystem assessment, to inform the approach paper and prioritization criteria, and subsequent draft plan documents
• Support the development/improvement guidelines/check-list/formats for integrating pro-poor sustainable NRM at national and local levels.
• Awareness raising of poverty-environment linkages and sustainable NRM targeting NPC officials and task forces involved in the formulation of the next periodic plan.
• Support for integration of pro-poor sustainable NRM into the budgetary process by providing technical analyses, e.g. Public Expenditure Review on environment, environmental fiscal reforms and improving the budgetary guidelines/formats and the NPC approval process of development projects to be included in the budget,
• Review of options for financing mechanisms for sustainable NRM and development of recommendations for financing options
• Improve the macro-level indicators used by the NPC poverty monitoring unit to strengthen monitoring and evaluation of pro-poor environmental outcomes.
• Provide training for NPC poverty monitoring unit for data collection and analysis on poverty-environment linkages and sustainable NRM.
• Review relevant guidelines and directives (e.g. integrated planning, monitoring guidelines, minimum conditions and performance measures, block grant guidelines) to assess their pro-poor and pro-environmental impacts at the local level and propose specific measures to improve them.
• Undertake an economic analysis of local government investments in rural road construction at Village Development Committee (VDC) level to assess the costs and benefits of alternative road construction approaches including social and environmental concerns.
• Provide policy recommendations on rural infrastructure development in partnership with MLD-led Rural Transport Infrastructure Sector Wide Approach (SWAp) Programme.
• Support the development of training materials targeted to the district level environmental officers on integrated planning and rural infrastructure development practices including training.
• Train Social Mobilisers on integrating pro-poor climate and environmental concerns in the development planning process including key environmental issues; participatory climate risk assessment, scenario development, integrated planning; participatory budgeting, monitoring and evaluation.
• Pilot selected planning tools building on the regional best practices (e.g. participatory climate risk assessment, community-based adaptation planning and options, scenario development, participatory budgeting, monitoring and evaluation) in selected districts/villages.
• Support design, production and dissemination of public awareness and communication materials on poverty-environment issues
• Assess the impacts of the existing DDC/VDC block grants on the local environment and natural resource base.
• Provide technical input to the improvement of the existing DDC/VDC block grant formula to better target the neediest communities and to provide incentives to increase investment in NRM and environmental protection.
• Provide specific recommendations on improving local government support to enable greater private investment in ecosystem services and sustainable livelihood options.
• Analyze the current practices for generating revenues and benefit sharing from natural resources and rural energy investment at VDC level including taxation, royalties, fees on marketable natural resources and payment for ecosystem services; and formulate policy recommendations.
• Improve understanding and information of targeted VDC officials and community user groups (specifically targeting marginalized groups) on  maximizing revenues from natural resource management and equitable benefit sharing options

What has been achieved to date?

• A PEI advisor has been appointed and is located at UNDP CO/NPC/MLD.
• An international and two  national consultants have been identified for the economic analysis of local government investments in rural road construction
• PEI provided technical inputs to the draft Approach Paper for the next periodic plan. A PEI consultant to the NPC has been supporting this process by providing technical advice to draft the Approach Paper. PEI’s involvement has been to highlight the key poverty-environment linkages and to ensure integration of environment and natural resource management into non-environment sectors’ development plans.
• The national consultation workshop was organized at the end of March 2010.
• PEI activities at District Development Committee (DDC) and Village Development Committee (VDC) levels under LGCDP have been identified.
• A PEI supported economic analysis of local government investments in rural road construction is under preparation.