Project title: Strengthening environmental policy and management capacity at the national and local levels as a contribution to poverty alleviation and sustainable development in Africa;
Started in September 2005;
The Government of Mozambique (GoM), through the Ministry for the Coordination of Environmental Affairs (MICOA) is responsible for the implementation and coordination of the project;
The main national partners are: MICOA, the Ministry of Planning and Development (MPD), UNDP Mozambique and the NGO Terra Viva;
Donors: Belgium and Norway (through UNEP). Funds are distributed through MICOA. Although UNDP Mozambique is not (yet) an official partner in the PEI in Mozambique, they are increasingly involved and are a member of the project team (with representatives from MICOA, MPD and UNDP). Funds have been secured from Ireland for further strengthening of the work;
The context of mainstreaming of environment in Mozambique
Mozambique’s first PRSP, the National Action Plan for the Reduction of Absolute Poverty (PARPA), was completed in 2001. The PARPA II was completed in 2006 and is for the period 2006-2009. Environment is treated as a crosscutting issue in the three pillars of PARPA II;
In 2003 a civil society group supported by UNDP and other partners completed Agenda 2025, a strategic exercise of reflection over the future of Mozambique. Agenda 2025 includes a chapter on Rural development as well as a chapter ‘Environment, Urban Development and Quality of Life’;
In 2005 Mozambique published a national report on the Millennium Development Goals that highlighted the limited progress towards achievement of MDG7. The Government of Mozambique envisages that the use of natural resources has to fulfill the basic needs of the people and development of the nation in equilibrium with economic growth, technology development, environmental protection and social equity.
Mozambique does not have a separate MDG implementation plan but considers PARPA II to be the country’s MDG implementation plan;
Every year the Government prepares an Economic and Social Plan (PES) to guide the implementation of the PARPA. PEI in Mozambique aims to build capacity of Government, especially at provincial and district level, to integrate environment in the development of the PES;
Main activities of the PEI
MICOA has coordinated the work of the PARPA reflection group. This group defined sectoral needs to address the environmental issues within PARPA and the Strategic Development Plans at Provincial Level. The reflection group includes civil society, Government, donors and private sector;
A national consultant has developed indicators that have been used by MPD as input for the indicators that will monitor progress of the environmental goals of PARPA II;
A national consultant has prepared a study that outlines relevant policies, projects, institutional arrangements related to poverty and environment and describing the importance of ecosystem services for human well-being in Mozambique (study available upon request);
MICOA, MPD and UNDP have developed criteria and a scoring system for demonstration projects, highlighting the importance of the environment for human well-being at the local level. A number of proposals have been positively reviewed by UNDP, MICOA and MPD. So far, four projects have received financial support;
A Media workshop has been held in Nampula (Northern Mozambique). Purpose of this workshop was to increase journalists’ knowledge on the linkages between poverty and environment, to discuss with them the role of the media in the raising of awareness on these issues and to come with ideas on how the media can be used to strengthen general awareness on the links between poverty and environment;
Capacity-building on the links between poverty and environment and on the mainstreaming of environment into PARPA-implementation at the provincial level is an important component of the project. To that effect, capacity building workshops for provincial and district level Government and CSO representatives are being organized by a team of MICOA, MPD and Centro Terra Viva. So far these workshops have been held in six provinces. UNDP Mozambique will now also join the organizing teams. MPD is taking the lead in preparation of training materials for use at the provincial and district level (expected to be ready early 2007);
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