REQUEST FOR LAND DEGRADATION ENABLING ACTIVITY
proposal for funding under THE GEF Trust Fund
PART I: Project IdentifiERS
EA Title: / Support to Alignment of Seychelles National Action Programme to the UNCCD Ten-Year Strategy and Reporting ProcessCountry(ies): / Seychelles / GEF Project ID:[1]
GEF Agency(ies): / UNEP / GEF Agency Project ID: / 01313
Other Executing Partner(s): / Ministry of Environment and Energy / Submission Date: / 11 June 2014
GEF Focal Area (s): / Land Degradation / Project Duration(Months) / 18
Check if applicable / NCSA NAPA / Agency Fee: / 13,014
A. ea Framework
EA Objective: To support Seychelles meets its obligations under the UNCCD through a) review and alignment of NAP with 10 – Year Strategy and b) Reporting and Review process.EA Component
/Grant Type
(TA/INV)
/Expected Outcomes
/Expected Outputs
/Grant Amount
($)
/Confirmed Co-financing
($)
1. NAP revision and alignment / TA / - Seychelles has aligned its National Action Plan (NAP) with the UNCCD 10 year strategy and institutionalized it within future government development frameworks / 1.1.1. A report on baseline information and assessment of national and sectoral plans and policies relating to land degradation (including the exisiting) NAP elaborated / 10,000 / 18,0001.1.2. Seychelles NAP updated and aligned to the UNCCD 10-Years Strategy, relevant national and sectoral development plans, through a participatory sector-wide process / 25,000 / 26,000
- Enhanced national capacities to assess and monitor baseline and indicators to undertake NAP alignment and to implement the UNCCD Strategy / 1.2.1. Training of stakeholders on data collection methdologies, analysis and application of indicators for monitoring and implementation of NAP and the 10-year Strategy, conducted / 12,000 / 8,000
1.2.2. Relevant biophysical and socio-economic baseline information on desertification and land management compiled and list of indicators developed and adopted by stakeholders / 16,442 / 18,000
1.3. Improved policy and institutional framework and financing mechanisms for NAP implementation / 1.3.1. Guidelines developed (in Arabic) for mainstreaming NAP priorities into relevant sectoral plans, national development plans and policies and international partners frameworks / 7,091 / 10,000
1.3.2. Report on national assessment of financial resources available, technology transfer needs for NAP implementation and integrated financial strategy elaborated / 12,000 / 4,000
1.3.3. Inter-sectoral national (linked to local actions) platform for collaboration, information and knowledge sharing, in support of combating desertification and reporting proposed and its implementation initiated / 11,000 / 4,000
1.3.4. A national communication and outreach strategy for NAP implementation to facilitate dissemination of information and technologies to stakeholders elaborated / 3,000 / 2,000
2. Reporting and Review / TA / 2.1 Improved capacities for regular and institutionalized national reporting and review process to the UNCCD / 2.1.1. Training of stakeholders on reporting requirements of the UNCCD, including data gathering, quality assurance, application of methodologies, procedures and tools for indicator-based reporting conducted / 7,000 / 2,000
2.1.2. A national report on impacts and measures taken to implement the UNCCD in Seychelles through a consultative process prepared, validated and submitted via the UNCCD PRAIS Portal / 17,000 / 16,000
2.1.3. A national plan for the long-term monitoring system of UNCCD implementation in Seychelles established / 4,000 / 2,000
Subtotal / 124,533 / 110,000
Project Management / 12,453 / 40,000
Total EA Cost / 136,986 / 150,000
B. Co-financing for the EA by source and by name
National government / Ministry of Environment and Energy / In-kind / 70,000
National government / Ministry of Natural Resources / In-kind / 50,000
Bi-Lateral/… / IFAD“Competitive Local Innovations for Small-Scale Agriculture Project (CLISSA) / In-kind / 20,000
GEF Agency / UNEP / In-Kind / 10,000
Others
(select)Bilateral Aid Agency (ies)FoundationLocal GovernmentMultilateral Agency (ies)National GovernmentNGOPrivate SectorOthers / (select)GrantSoft LoanHard LoanGuaranteeIn-kindUnknown at this stage
(select)Bilateral Aid Agency (ies)FoundationLocal GovernmentMultilateral Agency (ies)National GovernmentNGOPrivate SectorOthers / (select)GrantSoft LoanHard LoanGuaranteeIn-kindUnknown at this stage
Total Cofinancing / 150,000
C. GRANT Resources Requested by Agency, Focal Area and Country
GEF Agency / Type of Trust Fund / Focal area / Country name/Global / Project amount (a) / Agency Fee (b)2 / Total c=a+bUNEP / GEF TF / Land Degradation / Seychelles / 136,986 / 13,014 / 150,000
Total Grant Resources / 136,976 / 13,014 / 150,000
D. EA Management cost
cOST iTEMS / tOTAL eSTIMATED pERSON WEEKS/MONTH / GRANT AMOUNT / CO-FINANCING / EA TOTALlOCAL CONSULTANTS / 2 PERSONS/12 MONTHS / 8,453 / 4500 / 12,953
INTERNATIONAL CONSULTANTS
OFFICES FACILITIES, EQUIPMENT, VEHICLES, AND COMMUNICATIONS / 12 MONTHS / 4,000 / 10000 / 14,000
TRAVEL / 5000 / 5000
OTHERS/ / 500 / 500
TOTAL / 12,453 / 20,000 / 32,453
part ii: Enabling Activity JustiFication
Seychelles has participated in the Medium Size Project (MSP) for the LDC-SIDS Portfolio Project for SLM, Mainstreaming SLM into national sustainable development, at three levels, the individual, the institutional and the national levels. Seychelles now also has its Integrated Finance Strategy (IFS) for Sustainable Land Management (SLM) has been conceptualized and funded under the GEF UNDP[2] funded Capacity Development for Sustainable Land Management Project (SLM Project) in collaboration with Global Mechanism (GM). The SLM Project was part of a global portfolio of SLM projects for Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS) to respond to the obligation of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). The Ministry of Environment and Energy also has its Seychelles Sustainable Development Strategy (SSDS) which covers the period 2012-2020. Currently, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is elaborating the Medium Term National Development Strategy (MTNDS).
A SLM National Action Plan (NAP) was elaborated during 2011 and it contains the following Goals.
· Goal 1: Land Use Planning and Land Use Management are Supportive of Sustainable Land Management
· Goal 2: Forested Land and Watersheds are Sustainably Managed
· Goal 3: Agricultural Land and Water is Sustainably Managed and Contributing to Food Security in the Seychelles
· Goal 4: Physical Infrastructure Developments and Coastal Zone Developments are Supportive of Sustainable Land Management
2. Seychelles is also presently reviewing the Landuse Plans of all of its 26 districts its the Town and Country Planning Act.
3. This year Seychelles launched its Seychelles Protected Areas Policy.
In 2013 the Seychelles embarked on project with IFAD entitled “Competitive Local Innovations for Small-Scale Agriculture Project (CLISSA), the project is a 5 year USD3.7 million supporting market-oriented agricultural activities by seizing opportunities of the agricultural sector and addressing the threats of increased liberalization. The project focuses on strengthening the economic activities of smallholder farmers and fishers by linking them to potential buyers, thus allowing them to compete in markets.
The project's goal is to contribute to equitable and sustainable pro-poor agricultural and rural economic growth and employment. It promotes modern and sustainable agricultural and fishery practices, increases and diversifies market access for smallholder farmers and fishers.
CLISSA has national coverage, with key interventions on the three main islands of La Digue, Mahé and Praslin (the "Inner Islands"), where the large majority of the population is based.
4. Besides Seychelles has so far prepared and submitted its National Reports on UNCCD implementation to the Conference of Parties (COP). The proposed project will strengthen Seychelles’s capacity to align the NAP to the 10-year UNCCD Strategy and enhance the country’s reporting process under UNCCD following the new PRAIS format.
B. Enabling Activity Goals, Objectives, and Activities (The proposal should briefly justify and describe the project framework. Identify also key stakeholders involved in the project including the private sector, civil society organizations, local and indigenous communities, and their respective roles, as applicable. Describe also how the gender dimensions are considered in project design and implementation.) / 5. Based on Decision 3/COP 8, parties to the UNCCD adopted the 10-year strategy (208-2018) to enhance the implementation of the Convention. The Decision urged Parties to implement the Strategy in accordance with their national priorities, including the alignment of their action programmes and other relevant implementation activities relating to the Convention with the Strategy.
6. The Strategy’s Operational Objective 2 (OO2) urges affected Country Parties to revise their NAPs into strategic documents supported by biophysical and socio-economic baseline information and include them in integrated investment frameworks. The OO2 also encourages affected Country parties to integrate their NAPs as well as SLM and land degradation issues into their national development plans and relevant sectoral and investment plans and policies.
7. Decision 3/COP8 also calls on the CRIC to facilitate the implementation, monitoring and application of new reporting guidelines as well as develop an indicator system that should go hand in hand with the alignment of NAPs. Furthermore, the Decision urges the CST to make use of and contribute to the best practices database and to economical and biophysical baselines.
8. Decision 1/COP.8 reaffirms that the focus on the Convention is on protecting threatened ecosystems and eradicating poverty. The decision further calls for increased and sustained efforts in (i) capacity building in all areas relevant to the implementation of APs; (ii) participatory NRM (in particular SLM and IWM approaches) in coherence with national policies; (iii) promoting effective and sustained participation of all stakeholders and in particular civil society and private sector; and (iv) information sharing and technology transfer.
9. Para. 86 of the CRIC recommendations facilitate the implementation, monitoring and application of the new reporting guidelines. The guidelines emphasize (i) establishment of clear linkages between the revised action programmes and the indicators for reporting; (ii) that NAPs should set targets; (iii) collecting baseline information; (iv) identifying indicators and a timeframe; (v) specifying the range of activities envisaged to reach such targets; and (vi) identifying indicators to measure progress with achieving these targets.
10. Furthermore, Para. 109 notes that development of an indicator system should go hand in hand with the alignment of APs, reflecting knowledge of DLDD drivers and their interactions, and of the interaction of DLDD with climate change and biodiversity.
11. The project is expected to enable Seychelles to remove barriers to institutional coordination and put in place an appropriate mechanism for long term monitoring of DLDD as well as reporting process. A management information system will be put in place to enable vertical and horizontal data and information sharing among the various stakeholders, including the scientific community.
12. Accordingly, the proposed project responds well to the calls made by the various COP Decisions and CRIC recommendations to facilitate capacity building as well as providing technical and financial support to affected country parties to enable them to align their NAPs and monitor implementation of the Strategy and the Convention in line with the new reporting obligations.
13. Project Objective: The objective of the project is to build capacity of Seychelles to align its NAP with the 10-year UNCCD Strategy and prepare the 5th national report on UNCCD implementation in the country following the PRAIS format, including reporting on the impact indicators.
14. The proposed project will be all inclusive, involving participation of all stakeholders, including government ministries, departments and agencies, civil society organizations, private sector, scientific community and local communities. These will be assigned roles in project implementation depending on their comparative advantages. Gender balance will also be a key ingredient of the project, ensuring participation of men, women, youths and other groups in all stages of the project.
15. More specifically, the project will ensure all norms regarding social and environmental safeguards including gender considerations by ensuring (i) inclusiveness of both men and women in project formulation and implemention of the national consultation processes; (ii) ensuring inclusiveness for marginalized and poor communities in the consultations; (iii) collecting of gender disaggregated data and informaiton where possible, and (vi) analysis and articulation of relationship of DLDD to human well being and poverty reduction, through the impact indicators and the anticipated socioeconomic impacts of the aligned NAPs on the national development agenda.
16. The key national stakeholders which will be closely involved in the project implementation will include relevant departments of:
- The Ministry of Environment and Energy (MEE) is the hosting institution of the National UNCCD Focal Point and of the GEF Focal Point.
- Ministry of Natural Resources
- Ministry of Ministry of Finance, Trade and Investment
- Ministry of Landuse and Housing
- Ministry of Tourism and Culture
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs
- Ministry of Social Affairs, Community Development and Sports
- Ministry of Education
- Seychelles Agricultural Agency
- Seychelles National Parks Authority
- Gender empowerment organizations
- Other Non-Governmental Organizations
C. Describe the Enabling Activity and Institutional Framework for Project Implementation (discuss the work intended to be undertaken and the output expected from each activity as outlined in Table A ). / 1. The objective of this project is to facilitate access to GEF funding by Seychelles for Enabling Activities to meet its obligations under the UNCCD (i) alignment of NAPs with 10 – Year Strategy and (ii) Reporting and Review process. This will be achieved through following immediate objectives:
- To enable Seychelles to develop an aligned National Action Programme in light of operational and strategic objectives identified by UNCCD 10-year Strategy;
- To enable the country and national stakeholders to undertake the necessary consultations for elaboration of the next reporting and review process