Climate Change and Desertification
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Chapter 1 (Chapter 1) P-1 of 8 Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION 1. Introduction Page 1.1 Background (Justification for NCSA) 3 1.2 Concept of Capacity Building 4 1.3 Goals and objectives 4 1.4 Profile of Bangladesh 5 Methodology (NCSA preparation process / NCSA steps 1.5 6 Operational principles / NCSA preparation strategy) 1.6 Organization of final report 8 (Chapter 1) P-2 of 8 Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 BACKGROUND The issue of capacity building has become a major priority to the Global Environment Facility (GEF), within the global conventions and the international community as a whole. The World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) and the Second GEF Assembly reaffirmed the priority of building the capacity of developing countries. The GEF Secretariat, in consultation with the Implementing and Executing Agencies, has developed a strategic framework to give greater focus on capacity building of developing countries for global environmental management. Bangladesh is a signatory to a number of Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) including the Rio Conventions on biological diversity, climate change and desertification. However, the country’s capacities at individual, institutional and systemic levels to implement these conventions are limited. It is considered appropriate to build capacity of the country while the Rio Conventions are in different stages of implementation. Need is also felt to enhance the technical capacity of the country to take part in the global negotiation processes and link decisions taken at the global level to matching actions at the country level. The primary objective of the GEF-supported window on National Capacity Self-Assessment (NCSA) is to identify country level capacity building needs and priorities for global environmental management. Bangladesh participates in this assessment, recognizing that the NCSA window will also be used to enhance synergies among the activities related to the Rio Conventions. In this backdrop, Bangladesh developed a proposal and received funding for PDF-A from GEF /UNDP. The present National Capacity Self- Assessment Project is the outcome of the PDF-A phase. The project is being funded by the GEF/UNDP and implemented by the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) with the technical support of IUCN-The World Conservation Union, Bangladesh Country Office. The overall aim of NCSA is to provide Bangladesh with the opportunity to identify priority capacity needs in order to effectively address crosscutting global environmental issues. This enabling activity is to conduct a country-driven self-assessment and develop a strategy and action plan for capacity building in the environmental sector of the country. This project will enable the country to develop a plan of action to achieve global environmental management objectives in the context of the three conventions relevant for NCSA: the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). The focus of this project is to capture the concerns related to critical capacity constraints for implementing the MEAs; formulate strategic plan how to develop national capacity for thematic issues as well as issues that cut across focal areas; increase awareness on various issues with regard to national capacity for the MEAs; and link past and ongoing activities for the MEAs with overall national development policies. With a view to developing capacity building in Bangladesh for global environmental management, the National Capacity Self-Assessment Project was approved by the GEF on 12 November 2004 for a period of 16 months. The PRODOC was signed between the Government of Bangladesh (Economic Relations Division and MoEF) and UNDP on 29 December 2005. The Ministry of Environment and Forests approved the Technical Project Proposal (TPP) on 18 September 2005 for implementation of the project commencing from February 2006. (Chapter 1) P-3 of 8 1.2 CONCEPT OF CAPACITY BUILDING The term “capacity building” is used in many contexts, often with little reflection regarding its meaning. Over the last few years experts from many countries have been moving towards a common definition of the term and there is now general agreement that “capacity building” can be taken as “the actions needed to enhance the ability of individuals, institutions and systems to make and implement decisions and perform functions in an effective, efficient and sustainable manner”. At the individual level, capacity building refers to the process of changing attitudes and behaviors, most frequently through imparting knowledge and developing skills through training. However, it also involves learning-by-doing, participation, ownership, and processes associated with increasing performance through changes in management, motivation, morale and levels of accountability and responsibility. Capacity building at the institutional level focuses on overall organisational performance and functioning capabilities, as well as the ability of an organization to adapt to change. It aims to develop the institution as a total system, including its constituent individuals and groups, as well as its relationship to the outside. In addition to improvements in physical assets, such as infrastructure, institutional capacity building involves clarification of missions, structures, responsibilities, accountabilities and reporting lines, changes in procedures and communications and changes in the deployment of human resources. At the systemic level capacity building is concerned with the creation of “enabling environments”, i.e. the overall policy, economic, regulatory, and accountability frameworks within which institutions and individuals operate. Relationships and processes between institutions, both formal and informal, as well as their mandates, are important. Capacity building can occur at local, national or global levels and amongst any individual or group of stakeholders – individuals, entities or institutions, as well as at an overall systems level. Interactions between the different levels are also important to overall capacity. Capacity is relevant in both the short term (for example, the ability to address an immediate problem) and the long term (the ability to create an environment in which particular changes will take place). Capacity may imply “action”, or “inaction”, depending on the result desired. Capacity building does not always involve the creation of new capacity, but often the redeployment or release of latent capacities. 1.3 GOAL AND OBJECTIVES The overall aim of the GEF-supported NCSA in Bangladesh is to provide the country with the opportunity to take the lead in articulating it’s own capacity needs and priorities with respect to the global environment management taking into account the three fundamental global conventions i.e. UNFCCC, CBD and UNCCD. The primary goal of the NCSA process in Bangladesh is to identify, through a country-driven consultative process, priorities and needs for capacity building to protect the global environment. The specific objectives to be accomplished through the NCSA include: • To identify, confirm or review priority issues for action within the thematic areas of biodiversity, climate change and desertification/land degradation; • To explore related capacity needs within and across the three thematic areas; • To strengthen national procedures to negotiate and implement the global environmental conventions; • To integrate national data collection and reporting for various conventions; • To propose a unified capacity building strategy and action plans for future external funding and assistance; • To formulate an integrated institutional framework to coordinate and monitor the implementation of the strategy and action plans; • To retain and utilize existing capacity and linkage with institutional framework; • To link country action to the broader international environmental management and sustainable development framework. (Chapter 1) P-4 of 8 1.4 PROFILE OF BANGLADESH 1.4.1. Environmental profile of Bangladesh Boundary and topography: Bangladesh is a deltaic country bounded of it’s three sides – west, north, and east – by India. Bangladesh shares a common border with Myanmar in the southeastern part. In the south, Bangladesh has a long coastline along the Bay of Bengal. The total area of the country is 147,570 sq. km. Except for patches of the hilly areas in the southeast and northeast, and high lands in the northern and northwestern regions, the country basically consists of low, flat and fertile lands. Ground slopes of the country extend from north to south and the elevation ranges from 60 m mean sea level at the northern boundary to 1 m in the coastal area in the south. Flood plains constitute 80% of the lands, hills about 12% and terrace or uplifted blocks, about 8%. Rivers and wetlands: Bangladesh has around 310 rivers with a total length of 24,140 km. Among them, 54 rivers originate in India, which all eventually flow into the Bay of Bengal. These include the three major rivers, the Ganges, the Brahmaputra (Jamuna) and the Meghna (GBM), which together constitute the largest river network in the world. These rivers carry a total of approximately 1250 million units of water per year, 93% of which flows into Bangladesh from India. The rivers also carry about 2.0 billion tons of sediment annually to the Bay of Bengal. Wetlands or marshes belonging to topographically depressed areas, known as haors, baors and beels,