Review of the Sector-Wide Approach in Environment in Colombia: 2007-2010
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Review of the Sector-wide approach in environment in Colombia: 2007-2010 Report of the review mission commissioned by the Royal Netherlands Embassy in Bogotá and carried out by:- Peter Newborne, Claudia Martínez Zuleta and Guillermo Rudas Lleras July 2010 Table of Contents Acknowledgments and disclaimer ............................................................................................................................ ii Executive Summary .................................................................................................................................................. iv 1. Introduction ...................................................................................................................................................... 10 1.1. Purpose of the review ........................................................................................................................... 10 1.2. Agreed commitments and targets of the PAF ....................................................................................... 12 1.3. Institutions of the „National Environment System‟- „SINA‟................................................................ 13 1.4. Key review issues and questions .......................................................................................................... 15 1.5. Methodology and approach to the review ............................................................................................ 16 1.6. SWAps: framework of analysis ............................................................................................................ 17 1.7. International practice and experience of SWAps ................................................................................. 19 1.8. History of Dutch support to environment in Colombia ........................................................................ 20 1.9. Colombian SWAp: levels of working .................................................................................................. 21 1.10. Structure of the report ......................................................................................................................... 22 2. Summary of Findings and Recommendations on the fichas - at ‘first floor’ level ...................................... 24 2.1 Summary of technical and operational achievements ........................................................................... 24 2.2 Strengthening of the budget and core personnel ................................................................................... 25 2.3 Notable technical achievements ............................................................................................................ 26 2.4 Notable technical weaknesses ............................................................................................................... 27 2.5 Other technical work ............................................................................................................................. 27 3. Strengthening of Institutional Capacity: the ‘second floor’ ............................................................................. 30 3.1 Summary of institutional and managerial progress ............................................................................... 30 3.2 Strengthening organisation within the VMA: prioritising the fichas .................................................... 30 3.3 Strengthening VMA Leadership of the SINA ....................................................................................... 31 3.4 The role of the Office of National Parks ............................................................................................... 32 4. Positioning ‘environment’ in national policy: the ‘third floor’ ........................................................................ 33 4.1 Summary of political and diplomatic progress ...................................................................................... 33 4.2 The challenge of convening public debate ............................................................................................ 33 4.3 Environmental themes for convening renewed political support .......................................................... 34 5. Implementation of environmental policies under the incoming administration ............................................. 37 5.1 The manifesto of the coming government as it relates to environment ................................................. 37 5.2 Promoting key environmental themes as policy priorities .................................................................... 38 5.3 Minimum criteria for effective implementation of priority environmental policies ............................. 39 5.4 Financial flows to environmental policies - and institutional disconnects ............................................ 41 6. The enfoque sectorial three years on ................................................................................................................... 46 6.1 Trajectory of the SWAp - and added value ........................................................................................... 46 6.2 Characteristics of the SWAp reviewed.................................................................................................. 47 6.3 Opportunities and Risks ........................................................................................................................ 49 6.4 Lessons for Dutch cooperation .............................................................................................................. 51 7. Conclusions and recommendations ..................................................................................................................... 54 7.1 Conclusions ........................................................................................................................................... 54 7.2 Recommendations ................................................................................................................................. 58 References.................................................................................................................................................................. 60 Annexes ...................................................................................................................................................................... 64 Annex 1. Terms of Reference of 2010 review ............................................................................................ 64 Annex 2: Detailed reports of Achievements and Progress against the Targets in the „PAF‟ ...................... 67 Annex 3. Details of Budget Allocation and Commitment/Spend under Dutch grant - FYs 2007-2010 ... 111 i Acknowledgments and disclaimer This is a report for the Royal Netherlands Embassy (RNE) in Colombia which has commissioned a review of the achievements and progress of the enfoque sectorial - sector-wide approach (SWAp) - relating to the environment in Colombia. In August 2007 - soon after the agreement for the SWAp was entered into by the Government of Colombia and the Dutch Minister for Cooperation - an initial study was commissioned by the Policy Evaluation Department of the Dutch Directorate-General for International Cooperation (DGIS) which looked at the „characteristics, opportunities and risks‟ of the Colombian SWAp, and made recommendations for taking the experience forward. After the first year of operation of the SWAp, an internal report of progress was submitted in June 2008 by the Vice-Ministry of the Environment to the RNE in Bogotá. Then, the report of June 2009 set out the findings of the mid-term evaluation of the achievements and progress of the SWAp to June 2009. This 2010 review assesses the level of accomplishment of the SWAp in its first three years, from July 2007-June 2010. This review has been carried out by the following team of reviewers: Peter Newborne, Claudia Martínez Zuleta and Guillermo Rudas Lleras (see biographical notes on each below). The principal methodology employed by the review team was semi-structured focus groups and individual interviews with a wide range of institutions and other actors. The review team is grateful to those governmental and non-governmental actors involved in the environmental sector who took time to speak about the experience of the enfoque sectorial to-date. The reviewers would particularly like to thank Nubia Lucia Wilches Quintana, Daniela Mutis Gutierrez and the Directors of the Departments of the Vice-Ministry of Environment (Viceministerio de Ambiente - VMA) for their assistance in organising, and cooperation in attending, the focus groups held at the offices of the VMA. Thanks also to the Colombian Association of Environmental Authorities (Asociación Colombiana de Autoridades Ambientales - ASOCARs) for the opportunity to meet Directors of the Autonomous Regional Corporations (Corporaciónes Autónomas Regionales - CARs) at the Environmental Fair („FIMA‟) in Bogotá. Many thanks also to Harman Idema, Head of Cooperation, Maurice van Beers, Development Cooperation Officer, and Philip Bastianenen, First Secretary of Cooperation, of the RNE in Bogotá for their views expressed to the review team, as well as their help in facilitating access to high-level representatives of the key institutions and stakeholders, with the invaluable assistance of Martha Arevalo. Further, the review team also carried out desk-study of documents supplied by those consulted. The reviewers are