The Poverty Environment Initiative Programme 

Project Summary

The Poverty- Environment Initiative(PEI) is a joint global UNDP and UNEP programme launched in 2005 to address poverty, promote security and preserve the ecosystems that poor people rely on for their livelihoods. It emphasizes a need to place pro-poor economic growth and environmental sustainability at the heart of economic policies, planning systems and institutions. PEI assists 18 countries, including Tajikistan, in integrating poverty-environment linkages into national and sub-national development planning, from policy-making to budgeting, implementation and monitoring.

Duration

Objectives

·       Raise an awareness of decision makers, broader public and ordinary people on existing linkage between poverty and environment;

·       Integrate gender equality approach in poverty and environment (P-E) work by addressing both women and men’s concerns

·       Enhance the capacity of national and sub-national level stake holders on effective integration of P-E linkages into the national and sub0national development planning, budgeting and monitoring;

·       Strengthen regional cooperation through exchange of experience and knowledge sharing

Accomplishments

·       In 2012, within the framework of the Poverty and Environment Initiative, a scoping study “The Economics of Land Degradation for the Agriculture Sector in Tajikistan” was conducted to assess the impact of land degradation in economic terms thus building an evidence base for P-E mainstreaming.

·       The PEI introduced a new concept into the lending policies of the Micro Loan Foundations (MLFs) by including the environmental screening criteria. To date, through Poverty-Environment Initiatives, provision of micro-loans results in provision of permanent employment opportunities for 27 people (51% women) and seasonal jobs for 71 people (51 women);

·        Around 40% of recommendations have been fully integrated in a final strategic document of a short-term Living Standard Improvement Strategy of Tajikistan for 2013-2015.

·       P-E linkages were mainstreamed into a methodology of 41 district development plans countryside;

·       Agreement has been made with the Government on applying Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) for P-E mainstreaming into the next national strategies (National Development strategy and mid-term Development Strategy);

·       PEI enhanced the capacity of more than 250 governmental officials and local authorities on P-E mainstreaming into national and district levels planning documents.

Project partners

Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of the Republic of Tajikistan; Committee on Environmental Protection, Ecological Commission of Parliament, NGOs and public organizations.

Budget

The Programme is comprised of two Phases:

Phase 1: May 2010 -December 2013;

Phase 2: January 2014 – December 2017;

Donor: Poverty Environment Facility (PEF);

Budget: US$2mln