EaP GREEN Programme
Greening Economies in the European Union’s Eastern Neighbourhood Countries (EaP GREEN) is a large regional programme implemented in 2013-2017 by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), OECD, UNEP, and UNIDO to assist the six European Union’s Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries in their transition to green economy. The programme was financed by the European Commission, the four implementing organisations, and by other donors.
Overall, its aim was to assist Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine in progressing faster towards green economy by decoupling economic growth from environmental degradation and resource depletion. Such a development should result in higher productivity and competitiveness, better management of natural capital, enhanced environmental quality of life, more resilient economies, and new business and export opportunities.
EaP GREEN responded to commitments made by the partner countries, the European Union, and other partners in major international forums including the Rio+20 Earth Summit. This five years programme (2013-2017) was funded by the European Union and other donors including the governments of Austria, Norway, Slovenia, Switzerland, and the Netherlands. It was jointly implemented by a consortium comprising OECD (lead partner, responsible for environmental policy and strategy advice), UNECE (responsible for the improved use of Strategic, Environmental Impact Assessment (SEA/EIA) for green economic development), UNEP (responsible for pilot projects in organic agriculture and sustainable public procurement) and UNIDO (responsible for fostering the RECP uptake in particular in food processing, construction materials and chemicals, and the allied manufacturing sectors).
EaP GREEN was structured around three main components:
- Governance and financing tools
- SEA and EIA: accompanying SCP policy implementation
- Demonstration projects
Some of the specific objectives of the EaP GREEN Programme included:
- Mainstream sustainable consumption and production into national development plans, legislation, and regulatory frameworks so that sound incentives are provided for development in line with policy commitments and good international practices, including those encouraged in the EU;
- Promote the use of the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) as essential planning tools;
- Facilitate the greening of selected economic sectors (manufacturing, agriculture, food production and processing, construction).
For more details about the Programme, please visit the EaP Green official website.