Throughout the three phases of the process, PEI works with countries to strengthen institutions and capacities.

Institutional and capacity development starts by assessing the needs for institutional strengthening and capacity building. It can be followed by learning-by-doing capacity development, also called tactical capacity building. In the longer-term, institutions are able to embed poverty-environment in government processes, procedures and systems. Countries can also design a longer-term capacity building strategy targeting various development processes, at national, sector and local levels.  
A number of reviews, methodologies, tools and examples from countries can be used as reference.

Reviews and introductory documents

• Environmental Leadership Programmes, UNEP, UNESCO, Brown University, IMO
• A Brief Review of 20 Tools to Assess Institutional Capacity, UNDP, 2005
• Enhancing Capacity Building for Integrated Policy Design and Implementation for Sustainable Development, UNEP, September 2005

Methodologies and tools

• UNEP Resource Kit
• UNDP Capacity Assessment User’s Guide, 2007
• UNDP Capacity Assessment Methodology User Guide, UNDP, 2007
• UNDP Capacity Assessment Supporting tool, UNDP, 2007
• Ways to Increase the Effectiveness of Capacity Building for Sustainable Development, UNEP, May 2006
• National Capacity Self-Assessment – Resource Kit, UNDP, GEF, September 2005
• Ownership, Leadership and Transformation: Can we do better for Capacity Development, Carlos Lopes and Thomas Theisohn, UNDP, 2003
• A Guide for Self-Assessment of Country Capacity Needs for Global Environmental Management, GEF, 2001

Examples from countries

• PEI cross-regional study exchange visit – PEI Rwanda learns from PEI Asian experiences (Lao PDR, Nepal, Thailand), 14-24 May 2011
• Regional PEI Asia Lao-Thai study exchange visit, 4-10 May 2011
• PEI Ugandan delegation learns from mainstreaming experience in Rwanda, 28-29 January 2008
• Uganda: A Monitoring and Evaluation Framework for poverty and environment and law, Rhohn Development Services Ltd, 2006
• PEI Kenyan delegation learns from the Tanzanian experience of mainstreaming environment, 11-27 September 2006