2Nd Meeting of the Co-Ordination Group (For Biodiversity and Nature)

2nd Meeting of the Co-ordination Group (For Biodiversity and Nature)

27 June 2008

Minutes/ short presentation by DG RELEX

A brief background was provided on the process of programming geographical cooperation with particular regard to ENPI (European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument) and DCI (Development Cooperation Instrument) strategy papers. It was emphasized that Country and Regional Environmental Profiles, addressing also the theme of biodiversity, had been prepared for all partner countries/regions as part of the programming process. This took place systematically for the first time for the financial cycle of 2007-2013. Though the process was not flawless, it provided very useful lessons. A particular challenge is to ensure that these CEPs/REPs do indeed substantially influence the choices made by Country and Regional Strategy Papers and that they become ‘reference documents’ for both the EC and its partner countries/regions.

Particularly the DCI programming had to follow the line of the EU’s new development policy, the European Consensus, on the need for sectors concentration. It means in practice that strategy papers focus on a few areas rather than spreading funding across the full spectrum of development cooperation activities. As development cooperation is a demand-driven approach, the EC most of all responds to requests of partner countries who often prioritise more compelling economic and social needs and relatively rarely environment. Against this background, the Commission uses the general and sectoral policy dialogue with its partners as media to raise awareness to environmental issues and integrates/mainstreams environmental considerations in other focal areas of development cooperation. A second important challenge for the future is to improve and substantiate the uptake of environmental priorities through the mainstreaming process. This being said, examples were mentioned of strategy papers which do prioritise environment, and in some cases specifically biodiversity. In the context of Latin America these are the Country Strategy Papers of Brazil, Honduras and Bolivia, in Asia the Regional Strategy Paper for Asia and the Country Strategy Papers of Malaysia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, China and Bhutan. Environment, including water and forestry issues, is also a focal sector of the Regional Strategy Paper for Central Asia.

The programming of the ENPI followed a different logic; the need for sectors concentration was not applicable here, as the main objective of ENP cooperation is the alignment of policies. Therefore, environmentis included as a focal sector in several ENPI CSPs and NIPs (National Indicative Programmes)for 2007-2010, but in the vastmajority of casesthere is no ear-marking between environment media. Moreover, both the RIP(Regional Indicative Programme) ENPI South and the RIP ENPI East contain environment protection as one of their priorities. In addition to this, structured sectoral policy dialogue takes places withmost ENP partner countries.

Detailed information about support for environment, including biodiversity, from ENPI and DCI strategy papers will be provided for the 2008 progress report of the EU Biodiversity Action Plan.

Márta Szilágyi

DG RELEX L3

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