Energy and Environment

Regional Institutional Strengthening, Collaboration & International Frameworks

This category covers primarily projects with a regional or international character aimed at strengthening the regional dimension of combating desertification, through:

• the strengthening of the respective regional institutions their coordination capacities and their specialized organs in the countries covered by UNSO's mandate;
• the establishment of a favourable environment for the development of regional cooperation between the respective countries, as well as for the collaboration between UNSO and the regional institutions of these countries,
• support to actions reinforcing actions to combat desertification on the national level, particularly in the area of sensibilization and training.

UNSO mandate stipulated that the office represent the United Nations in various subregional organisations. UNSO support in capacity building concerned in particular the Permanent Inter-state Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS), the Intergovernmental Authority for Development (IGAD) and, more recently with the expansion of the geographical coverage for other organizations, including the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Arab Maghreb Union (UMA).

These projects aimed, thus, at improving the working framework on the regional level and to support the regional institutions to more effectively assume their responsibilities, particularly in the area of programming, coordination of activities, sensibilization and training, research, resource mobilization, and others as related to combating desertification.

These projects have generated significant results, specifically in the area of sensibilization and training, in programming and capacity development. It was also possible to draw a number of useful lessons, which have been build on in the preparation and the implementation of the Convention to Combat Desertification and in particular with regard to subregional action programmes.

One lesson is that the effective participation of the concerned countries is essential for the effectiveness and sustainability of regional efforts. Experience has shown that continuity of the achievements was, in many cases, affected by a lack of efficient participation of the implied countries. Also the constraints in the own institutional frameworks of each country have further limited the sustainability of the results achieved. The major challenge has been to focus the organizations on issues that can best be handled on the subregional level rather than working as mere conduits financial resources to member countries.

It is worth noting that UNSO has assisted practically all Sudano-Sahelian countries to prepare their position and a common platform for the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED 1992). This support has certainly contributed to the fact that the issues of desertification and drought were reflected in Agenda 21 and made their way to an agreement on the UN Convention to Combat Desertification and Drought.

There is one summary currently available that can illustrate the kind of support. You may refer to the project listing under this category for a more complete overview:

• Campagne nationale de vaccination contre la peste bovine
  (CHD/83/S01), République du Tchad