Current Projects

The primary goal of this project is to identify, through a country-driven consultative process, the priorities and needs for capacity building to protect the global environment which can work effectively within the existing political, administrative and cultural systems of the country.

Through participating in an NCSA process Vanuatu will: review and confirm national environmental priority issues for action within the thematic areas of biodiversity, climate change, desertification/land degradation and persistent organic pollutants. explore related capacity needs within and across these thematic areas. link country action in these thematic areas to the broader national environmental management and sustainable development priorities and action plans. catalyse targeted and coordinated action, and requests for future external funding and assistance.

The project is being implemented as an interim capacity-building activity between the Initial and the Second Communications. Hence it is intended to complement activities of the Phase 1 project, related to the Initial Communication, while at the same time forming basis for initiation of the Second National Communication to the UNFCCC.

The development goal of the project is to conserve and sustainably use biodiversity in six biosphere reserves in West Africa that are predominantly composed of savanna ecosystems. The project purpose is to systematically strengthen scientific and technical capacity for effective management of the biosphere reserves. This targeted intervention strategy has been designed to complement existing investments and projects within the biosphere reserves. The project will improve the understanding of interactions between local communities and savanna ecosystems, identify and promote sustainable use of biodiversity in pilot demonstrations, strengthen stakeholder capacity at all levels, and more effectively integrate stakeholders into the management of each biosphere reserve. The project will make extensive use of the African Network of Biosphere Reserves, AfriMAB, and, in particular, the sub-regional AfriMAB network for West Africa for regional technical and scientific information exchange, capacity building, and sharing of lessons learned.

This project will develop and implement integrated ecosystem management strategies in the Russian Arctic in two to three model areas, and strengthen the capacity of federal and regional/local authorities, indigenous people and other stakeholders in sustainable biodiversity management.

The programme’s overall goal is to provide an integrated package of flexible support activities to facilitate implementation of enabling activities. By doing so, it will assist countries in promoting integration of climate change policy into countries’ national development priorities, on the basis of national needs and priorities. The programme emphasises capacity building, knowledge sharing and monitoring of programme progress.

The main objective of this project is to provide methodological and technical support to UNCCD Parties in preparing and submitting their 2026 national report on the implementation of the 2018-2030 Strategic Framework of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). Through feedback received from Parties, the project will initiate the next iteration of the reporting forms and platform. The project also supports countries in tracking progress towards Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 15.3 and estimating SDG indicator 15.3.1, the proportion of land that is degraded over total land area, as contribution to the follow-up and review of progress in implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The project also supports the development of capacity of Parties to mobilize resources, track and incorporate reliable financial resources data into national planning.

In response to outcomes of COP 15 of UNCCD, decisions 9 and 11 of COP15, this project aims to support eligible countries to utilize GEF resources for implementing the Convention and the UNCCD Strategy (2018-2030), which is a comprehensive global commitment to avoid and reduce desertification and land degradation and to restore the productivity of degraded land to achieve Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN). The project will support Parties to enhance their national-level institutions and technical capacities for effective and timely preparation and submission of the 2026 UNCCD national reports. To achieve this, the project will offer technical support to the UNCCD National Focal Points, equipping them with the technical tools to collect data and submit national reports through the Performance Review and Assessment of Implementation System (PRAIS) reporting tool.

To foster international cooperation towards the swift entry into force of the BBNJ Agreement and to promote implementation readiness at the global and the regional level.

The objective of the Enabling Activity (EA) grant is to support countries in: (a) assessing the extent to which their current legal, policy and institutional framework allows for promptly becoming parties to the Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ Agreement) and enables their implementation of the Agreement; (b) carrying out preparatory work in the context of their ratification, approval, acceptance or accession process towards becoming parties to the BBNJ Agreement; and (c) supporting their readiness to implement the BBNJ Agreement.

The project aims to support four countries: - Benin, Guinea-Bissau, Niger, Tuvalu to prepare and submit Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs) and combined Biennial Transparency Report / National Communication (BTR/NCs) that will comply with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement (PA) reporting requirements, while responding to national development goals.

The project aims to support four countries–Azerbaijan, Iraq, Liberia, and Malawi–to each prepare and submit Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs) and combined Biennial Transparency Report / National Communications (BTR/NCs) that will comply with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement reporting requirements, while responding to national development goals.

Facilitate the implementation of the Stockholm Convention in participating countries through the development, review and update of the NIPs and submission to the Conference of the Parties (COP) of the Convention. 

The project aims to support four countries: - Burundi, CAR, Côte d’Ivoire, and Turkmenistan to each prepare and submit Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs) and combined Biennial Transparency Report / National Communication (BTR/NCs) that will comply with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement (PA) reporting requirements, while responding to national development goals.

The project aims to support four countries–Ecuador, Maldives, Rwanda, and Uganda–to prepare and submit Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs) and combined Biennial Transparency Report / National Communications (BTR/NCs) that will comply with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement (PA) reporting requirements, while responding to national development goals.

The objective of this Enabling Activity project is to facilitate the review of implementation of Article (RIA) 7 of the Minamata Convention in participating anglophone countries through the review, update and endorsement of their National Action Plans (NAPs).

The objective of this Enabling Activity project is to facilitate the review of implementation of Article (RIA) 7 of the Minamata Convention in participating Francophone and Spanish-speaking countries through the review, update and endorsement of their National Action Plans (NAPs).

Facilitate the implementation of the Stockholm Convention in participating countries through the review and update of the NIPs and submission to the Conference of the Parties (COP) of the Convention.

The project aims to support four countries–Ghana, Kenya, Solomon Islands, and South Africa–to each prepare and submit Biennial Transparency Reports (BTRs) and combined Biennial Transparency Report / National Communications (BTR/NCs) that will comply with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement (PA) reporting requirements, while responding to national development goals.

To assist the Government of Mauritania in the development of its National Action Plan for the Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining (ASGM) sector, raise awareness on the Minamata Convention, and to build national capacity for the early implementation of the National Action Plan and the Minamata Convention

Facilitate the early implementation of the Minamata Convention through the use of scientific and technical knowledge and tools by national stakeholders in Bahrain.

The main objective of the national reporting is to assist Malawi monitor the status of implementation of the CBD in the country and to identify gaps and constraints. The First and Second National Biodiversity Reports were completed and submitted to the CBD Secretariat in January 1999 and May 2001, respectively.

Strengthening national capacities for implementing the Enhanced Transparency Framework in Caribbean countries.

To reduce the adverse impacts of POPs, uPOPs and heavy metal (such as mercury) on human health and environment across the life cycle of electrical and electronic equipment in SADC countries

Supporting integrated, low-carbon, and nature-positive urban development in Kenya through the adoption of policies, capacity building, neighborhood design, pilot implementation and resource mobilization, to generate global environmental benefits.