Energy and Environment

The UNDP/Global Environmental Facility (GEF) funded project on "Coping with drought and climate change: best use of climate information for reducing land degradation and conserving biodiversity" supports sustainable livelihoods of drylands populations. The programme promotes an integrated ecosystems management approach that hinges on better use of local and scientific knowledge of climate in farming and herding. It offers farmers/herders options for long-term drought management as alternatives to merely emergency responses. Given the complex but close linkages between droughts, land degradation, biodiversity and climate change, the programme will give some attention to the interface among the three Conventions: the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

The programme was initiated in 1999, and has since accomplished six tasks:

1) developed the conceptual framework
2) defined the elements of the programme
3) built a network of partners
4) linked programme to country priorities
5) mobilized resources
6) boosted country awareness and commitment.

The primary partners of this programme include, drought affected countries, the United Nations Development Programme, Drylands Development Centre, the Global Environmental Facility (GEF), the US Drought Mitigation Centre of the University of Nebraska (USNDMC), the US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), International Research Institute for climate prediction (IRI) of Columbia University and regional bodies such as SADC, African Centre of Meteorological Applications for Development (ACMAD), Centre Régional de Formation et d'Application en Agrometeoroloie et Hydrologie Opérationnelle (AGRYMET) and Drought Monitoring Centres located in Kenya and Zimbabwe.

The GEF secretariat has approved funding of $US425, 000 for the project development fund Block-B (PDF-B). These funds will enable the eight African countries (Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Niger, Senegal and Zimbabwe) to develop 7-10 year project documents in accordance with their national priorities. The specific activities to be undertaken are:

1) development of a full project brief
2) needs assessment for capacity building
3) development of resource mobilization strategies
4) identification of demonstration sites
5) on-site biodiversity and socio-economic mapping
6) supporting on-going country efforts to raise awareness and establish consensus for the project.

UNDP is finalizing agreements on the disbursement of funding to participating countries for the development of the first phase of the project. Project implementation is scheduled to begin in 2004.

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