Fourth Donor Steering Committee MeetingILO Headquarters, Geneva

27 January 2016

Summary of Meeting

I) Synopsis of Key Points and Conclusions

The Fourth PAGE Donor Steering Committee (DSC4) meeting was attended by all key funding partners, which included representatives from the European Commission, Finland, Germany, Norway, Republic of Korea, Sweden and Switzerland, as well as five PAGE agencies and the Secretariat. The representative from United Arab Emirates sent his regrets.1 The meeting reviewed the progress PAGE has made, mainly in 2015, discussed plans for 2016 and deliberated on the PAGE Operational Strategy for 2016-2020.2

Key points of the meeting included:

1. Expression of continued confidence by DSC members in the potential of PAGE to help advance the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, at national and sub-national level, and their renewed commitment to work with and guide PAGE in delivering more results and reforms in partner counties.

2. Recognition of PAGE efforts to follow-up on and implement the recommendations of DSC3 including, but not limited to, the revision of the Operational Strategy and organization of joint events with funding partners to make PAGE more visible (referring to events at the Third International Conference on Financing for Development at Addis Ababa, the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development in New York and the UN Sustainable Development Summit in New York).

3. Positive reception of the revised PAGE Operational Strategy 2016-2020, which features expanded text on alignment with the SDGs and how PAGE can assist countries in operationalizing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

4. Recommendation to finalize the Strategy based on suggestions provided ahead of the DSC meeting, as well as expanding: 1) the narrative about the inclusive green economy framework and instruments, green competitiveness and the role of markets in transitioning to an inclusive green economy; 2) links to the Paris Declaration and climate initiatives; 3) the long-term sustainability of PAGE work in countries and “exit strategy,” 4) the monitoring and evaluation section, and; 4) a resource mobilization plan and partnership strategy to deliver transformational change.

5. Indication of possible additional financial contributions over the coming years by many funding partners to fill the funding gap and the offer to help open doors to mobilise other resources.

6. Reflection of improved understanding by DSC members of PAGE’s country work and advice to PAGE for sharing more and holistic information that can help representatives of funding partners to tell the PAGE story to their peers and superiors.

7. Recommendation for including more details about results achieved at country level in the 2015 Annual Report. Also to inform funding partners about planned country and global activities in advance to enable participation, contributions and coordination with national delegations/projects of funding partners.

8. An unanimous decision to recommend Barbados and Kyrgyz Republic to the PAGE Management Board as new countries joining PAGE in 2016, as well as the state of Mato Grosso (Brazil) once the application process has been completed. A suggestion to add “strategic importance” to the list of criteria for selection of new countries.

1 List of Participants is attached as Annex 1.2 Agenda of the meeting is attached as Annex 2.

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9. Overall support for the proposed plans for the midterm evaluation of PAGE and interest in playing an active role in the exercise, including by constituting a reference group. Also a suggestion to align the scope and expectations with available resources for the evaluation.

10. Underlining the usefulness of DSC meetings, a proposal by funding partners to hold its meeting twice a year and one of these in a PAGE country where members can gather firsthand knowledge of PAGE work. Also a suggestion to make financial information available on PAGE workspace and share meeting documents two weeks in advance.

II) Proceedings of the Meeting

1) Key Messages from Funding Partners’ Preparatory Meeting on 26 January

PAGE funding partners met on 26 January, ahead of the DSC4 meeting, and shared the following points with PAGE agencies at the DSC meeting:

- Funding partners are interested in PAGE and want to add value as well as be able to present PAGE better to their colleagues and senior managers. They proposed holding two DSC meetings each year and one of them in a PAGE partner country as it will provide the best opportunity to understand PAGE work.

- Several funding partners anticipate continued financial support for PAGE. PAGE will nevertheless need to mobilise additional resources to fully implement the Operational Strategy over the next 5 years. PAGE has the potential and, with appropriate planning, should seize the opportunity to help countries operationalize the SDGs.

- The nationally owned and nationally guided nature of PAGE activities is seen as a huge asset for partner countries and lends PAGE unique flexibility to define the scope and content of its services to respond to country specific challenges. It, however, makes attribution to change difficult. Also, given that the sustainable development challenges of each country vary as do PAGE services in response, it is complex to explain the core offer of PAGE to colleagues in other departments and ministries. PAGE should continue its focus on national ownership and not engage with a country unless there is real commitment; this is the greatest selling point for PAGE.

- Funding partners would like to see finalization of the Operational Strategy, progress on the midterm evaluation plan, more details on 2016 plans and improved linkages with other initiatives.

2) 2015 Highlights and Finances

The secretariat gave an overview of the key activities and results achieved in 2015 and the financial situation. PAGE characterized 2015 as a year of growing trust among partners and some initial results in terms of policy uptake. Although many outcomes are not yet at the level of transformational change, PAGE is seen as on the right track. In addition to an overview of country highlights, PAGE partners presented more detailed stories of the work in 2015 in Mongolia and Senegal and highlighted a few global events.

The Government of Mongolia adopted in January 2016 the Action Plan for Implementation of the Green Development Policy, which incorporates many PAGE initiatives and activities, such as green development indicators, green jobs, green economy learning, sustainable public procurement, green building, sustainable finance and waste management.

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In Senegal, through PAGE engagement with parliamentarians and other stakeholders, as well as initial green economy assessments, the Government has adopted a new employment policy including a national green jobs strategy and is setting up a public-private incubator for green entrepreneurs. PAGE work in Senegal is being carried out in partnership with a number of non-PAGE initiatives and projects.

Among the numerous national, regional and global PAGE events in 2015, highlights included the First Regional Forum for Latin America in Colombia, the Global Forum on Green Economy Learning held in Paris, and the event at the UN Summit on Sustainable Development in New York.

Appreciating the progress, funding partners recommended that 2015 Annual Reports be specific and illustrative, and provide more detail on partnerships and on how countries use global products. The internal annual report should inform progress against the global log-frame and provide insight into which agency is leading which country.

Funding partners requested to be included in the planning of outreach and international events to enable their participation to share their own country experiences.

During the discussion on PAGE finances, funding partners requested that financial information be shared in advance to enable their analysis and ability to comment at the meeting. The secretariat will strive to provide information earlier although it faces constraints, such as difficulty in gathering information from financial offices in the format and the level of detail requested by the DSC. Also, differences in financial systems among partners, and the transition to the SAP system UMOJA in 2015 adds to the challenges. PAGE will nonetheless aim to post information on the PAGE workspace and to share documents ahead of meetings.

3) Operational Strategy 2016-2020

The revised Operational Strategy was presented to the DSC. Funding partners particularly appreciated revisions made to better align PAGE with the SDGs and Agenda 2030, as countries are thinking now about operationalization and international resources are being allocated for their support. Partners also recognized improvements to the partnerships section of the document in response to its previous comments. This section could further detail intra-UN partnerships as well as collaboration among the PAGE agencies.

The Strategy should make clear that economic competitiveness is a priority for all countries and that IGE transformation is the path toward it. Although PAGE needs to remain focused on national priorities, the Operational Strategy should clarify the economic framework toward which countries should strive with PAGE support. Partners recommended that the Strategy elaborate on the role of markets and technology that are the tools for reforming the economy.

PAGE funding partners expressed their enthusiasm for PAGE and offered to assist in opening doors to mobilise additional resources. They suggested to further develop the resource mobilization strategy to detail fundraising efforts from climate funding and other sources.

At the meeting, Norway shared that it is expecting to contribute about USD 1 million per year for the next 5 years but this contribution is subject to parliamentary decision every year. The Republic of Korea’s annual contributions are also subject to parliamentary approvals and the agreement for 2016 contributions will be signed at the second session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA2). The EU has already pledged Euro 8 million. Sweden shared that it expects to announce 2016 funding for PAGE soon, perhaps representing a slight increase from 2015. The current funding

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from Finland, Switzerland and Germany runs through 2017. Switzerland noted that the size of future funding depends on the results of the midterm evaluation. Finland’s future contribution depends on parliamentary approval and the midterm evaluation.

Other points raised included: Although alignment with the climate change agenda is addressed in the Strategy and

embedded in the SDGs, the Paris Declaration and relevant climate initiatives should also be addressed.

The section on long-term country sustainability could include Inquiry and other initiatives that can help mobilize financial markets.

The Strategy could be shortened and restructured: a first section on the structure, principles, etc. that does not change, and a second section on the 2016-2020 plan.

The revised version of the Strategy will be submitted to The Management Board for discussion and subsequent approval. Once finalized, it will be used for communication, public outreach and fundraising purposes. There was a proposal to launch the Strategy at UNEA2.

4) New PAGE Country Selection

A summary of applications received, after the call for proposal was launched in September 2015, was presented to the DSC. These included applications from Barbados, Kyrgyz Republic, Mato Grosso state of Brazil, Niger, and a regional proposal from five Central Asian States. Funding partners discussed in depth the adequacy of the current application process and suggested to add “strategic importance” as a criterion. Funding partners agreed that evidence of high-level interest and coordination between ministries was a key criterion for selection.

Funding partners unanimously agreed to recommend Barbados and Kyrgyz Republic to the Management Board as new countries to join PAGE in 2016. Funding partners also welcomed the interest of Mato Grosso state of Brazil in joining PAGE and expressed their support once a completed application package and an expression of support from the Federal Government are received. For Niger, PAGE was asked to assess continued interest by the new Government and undertake due diligence. The application of the Central Asian states was found not to meet all the required criteria, in particular demonstration of high-level interest by each country mentioned in the regional application.

5) Midterm Evaluation

The Secretariat presented the plan for an independent midterm evaluation of PAGE to be carried out with the help of the UNEP Evaluation Office. The work on developing the TORs and consulting the funding partners and PAGE agencies was initiated in January 2016. USD 50,000 from the PAGE Trust Fund has been allocated for the evaluation. At the DSC, funding partners had the opportunity to discuss the details with an expert from the UNEP Evaluation Office. It was explained that at midterm it is too early to assess impacts; the midterm evaluation will, however, identify emerging factors that would lead to the desired results. The MTE will analyze whether the project is on-track, the problems or challenges it is encountering, and will propose any corrective actions.

It was recommended to: Extend the evaluation period (up to the end of 2016). Tailor the terms of reference to PAGE and focus the midterm evaluation on strategic areas of

PAGE support. General clauses about IGE can be taken out. Reduce the number of country studies, possibly to three instead of five, given the limited

resources.

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Evaluate the replication potential of PAGE based on current structure and make suggestions for scaling it up (based on the Operational Strategy) to contribute to the 2030 Agenda.

Ensure that all evaluation consultants, global and national, have some green economy background.

If resources allow, evaluate possible gap between the needs of PAGE countries and PAGE interventions, and survey countries that had earlier expressed interest in PAGE but did not submit an application to understand the reason they did not apply.

Based on the suggestions received, the UNEP Evaluation Office will revise the terms of reference and propose a budget.

6) 2016 Engagements and Forward Planning

PAGE partners provided an overview of planned activities in the eight countries with a detailed description of planned work in Peru and Jiangsu province of China.

In Peru, 2016 will be a year of Government change. PAGE will remain relevant through the multi-stakeholder platform, which in addition to Government includes other political parties, civil society organizations and labour groups. Peru is seeking accession to the OECD by 2021, for which a green growth declaration has been signed by seven ministries. It iscoordinated by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The latter is less affected by changes in Government, thus PAGE is strengthening its ties with the Ministry. PAGE and its partners will also reach out to the two winning candidates of the first round of national elections by inviting the candidates to discuss the inclusion of green growth in their development plans . Also with the aim of ensuring continuity in Peru, PAGE will take the sectoral approach to the subnational level (by Peruvian region) to show its potential.

At technical level, Peru’s Green Economy Assessment focuses on policy proposals for three sectors: agriculture, forestry and transport. Green industry work is being undertaken with UNIDO support. PAGE has also reached out to UN-REDD partners to identify areas of collaboration in the forestry sector.

In Jiangsu province of China, 2016 will be the year to identify means of implementation for IGE policies in tackling challenges and to exemplify successes to catalyse actions in other provinces and countries towards IGE. In Jiangsu, the focus of PAGE work is implementation of IGE which is included in the national Five-Year Plan and some companies were mentioned at Rio+20 as models of energy efficiency. At the governance level, PAGE will promote collaboration between departments and peer learning; at the sectoral level, PAGE will provide technical assistance through facilitating access to green technologies, developing a set of IGE indicators for integrated policymaking, assessing potential for green energy transition and building capacity for green jobs, among others. PAGE will also document successes in Jiangsu and provide opportunities to share good practices and lessons learned at the national and international levels to encourage more actions.

Funding partners appreciated details about the two countries and requested more and advance information about country-level activities to ensure coordination with their national delegations and projects.

7) Global Level—2016 Engagements and Forward Planning

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PAGE partners shared the major global-level products and events planned for 2016, which fall under five broad categories: 1) modelling and measurement; 2) integrated planning and fiscal reform; 3) jobs, industry, trade; 4) IGE training/capacity development package, initiatives, and networks; and 5) outreach and communications.

To exemplify outcomes in 2016, details were presented of the Green Economy Progress Measurement Framework (which comprises a Green Economy Progress Index (GEPI) and the dashboard of Green Economy indicators), planned follow-up actions to the network launched at the Green Economy Learning Forum in Paris and the PAGE Global Academy.

GEPI includes 11 individual indicators that capture important issues for achieving IGE transition, such as material footprint, inequality (Palma ratio), and green innovation and trade. GEPI can be customized to country context in terms of priority areas, and national ambitions and targets for sustainable development. The dashboard of Green Economy indicators includes, inter alia, CO2 emissions per capita, ecological footprint and inclusive wealth index. It helps to track sustainability of efforts and achievements for transition to IGE. Funding partners were interested in the GEPI and its use to support operationalization of SDGs. They also recommended its use as a communications tool.

It was also proposed that the visibility of PAGE be raised especially at UNEA2, which includes a High Level Session on “Delivering on the Environmental Dimension of the Post-2015 Development Agenda.” Some of the funding partners offered to co-host/support a PAGE side event at UNEA2.

Building on the success of the side event at the Sustainable Development Summit, which was hosted by Germany, PAGE is informally exploring whether Germany may be interested in hosting the second PAGE Conference in early 2017. The slot for the third PAGE Conference, possibly in late 2018, is still open for interested host countries.

8) AOB- UNIDO announced a conference it is organizing with the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs

on green industry, 28-30 June 2016 in Ulsan, Korea, focusing on eco-industrial parks.- UNEP shared information about the fourth annual conference of the GGKP, to be held in the

Republic of Korea, in September 2016. Opportunities for contributing to the conference and raising PAGE visibility are under consideration.

- Funding partners reiterated their request for documents to be sent two weeks in advance of meetings and DSC meetings to be held twice a year.

9) Follow-Up Points

Points requiring follow up to the meeting include:

-- Revise and finalize the Operational Strategy;- Revise the terms of reference of the midterm evaluation and form Reference Group;- Expand the country selection criteria to factor in “strategic importance;” -- Develop and initiate implementation of a resource mobilization plan;- Work with existing funding partners to connect with potential new donors;- - Engage funding partners early in the planning of PAGE activities to enable their participation;

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- Provide financial information two weeks in advance of future DSC meetings;- Provide more details on country-level results in the next annual report;- Management Board to make decisions regarding the applications of Barbados and Kyrgyz

Republic, Mato Grosso State, Niger, and Turkmenistan on behalf of Central Asian States;- Management Board to make decision on frequency of DSC meetings and potential venues.

10) Annexes

1) Participants list of the Fourth Donor Steering Committee Meeting2) Agenda of the Fourth Donor Steering Committee Meeting

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Annex 1:PAGE Fourth Steering Committee Meeting, 27 January 2016

Participants List

Name Country Title/ Organization Contact Information

1 Mr. Thibaut Portevin

European Commission

Policy Officer, Forests and Green Economy; Directorate-General for International Cooperation and Development

Thibaut.portevin@ec.europa.eu

2 Ms. Marjaana Kokkonen

Finland Counselor, Unit for International Environment Policy, Ministry for Foreign Affairs

marjaana.kokkonen@formin.fi

3 Ms. Heini Leppänen

Finland Special Advisor, UN-affairs, ILO, Environment & ClimatePermanent Mission of Finland

Heini.Leppanen@formin.fi

4 Ms. Annika Lindblom

Finland Ministerial Adviser, International AffairsSecretary General, Finnish National Commission on Sustainable Development, Ministry of the Environment

annika.lindblom@ymparisto.fi

5 Ms. Katharina Peschen

Germany Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH

Katharina.Peschen.Extern@bmub.bund.de

6 Ms. Mino Kim Rep. of Korea

Program Officer, International Affairs Division, Ministry of Environment

joannh@korea.kr

7 Ms. Guri Sandborg

Norway Deputy Director General, Ministry of Climate and Environment

Guri.Sandborg@kld.dep.no

8 Lauren C. Naville Gisnås

Norway Senior Adviser, Section for Climate, Forests and Green Economy, Department for Climate, Energy and Environment

Lauren.C.Gisnas@norad.no

9 Mr. Jan Olsson Sweden Environmental Ambassador, Ministry of the Environment and Energy; Ministry for Foreign Affairs

Jan.olsson@regeringskansliet.se

10 Ms. Gunilla Blomquist

Sweden Deputy Director, Ministry of the Environment

gunilla.blomquist@regeringskansliet.se

11 Mr. Philipp Ischer

Switzerland Programme Manager, State Secretariat for Economic Affairs

Philipp.ischer@seco.admin.ch

12 Tim Kasten UNEP Tim.kasten@unep.org13 Steven Stone UNEP Steven.stone@unep.org14 Asad Naqvi UNEP Asad.naqvi@unep.org15 Fulai Sheng UNEP Fulai.sheng@unep.org16 Vera Weick UNEP Vera.weick@unep.org17 Ronal Gainza

CarmenatesUNEP Ronal.gainza-

carmenates@unep.org18 Silvi Llosa UNEP Silvi.llosa@unep.org19 Hameed UNEP Hameedullah.jamali@unep.org

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Name Country Title/ Organization Contact Information

Jamali20 Dirk Wagener UNEP Dirk.wagener@unep.org21 Elisa

CalcaterraUNEP Evaluation Office Elisa.calcaterra@unep.org

22 Ying Zhang UNEP23 Gunnar

ShafferUNEP Gunnar.shaffer@unep.org

24 Nikhil Seth UNITAR Nikhil.seth@unitar.org25 Angus Mackay UNITAR Angus.mackay@unitar.org26 Amrei

HorstbrinkUNITAR Amrei.horstbrink@unitar.org

27 Gilbert Houngbo

ILO

28 Kees van der Ree

ILO vanderree@ilo.org

29 Dorit Kemter ILO kemter@ilo.org30 Moustapha

Kamal GueyeILO gueye@ilo.org

31 Tim Scott UNDP Tim.scott@undp.org32 Sarwat

ChowdhuryUNDP sarwat.chowdhury@undp.org

33 Frank Van Rompaey

UNIDO c.linke@unido.org

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Annex 2: PAGE Fourth Donor Steering Committee Meeting

AgendaFourth PAGE Steering Committee Meeting

27 January 2016, 9:00-16:30 CETElimane Kane Room (Room XII) – R3 South, ILO Building,

4, Route des Morillons, Geneva

8:30-9:00 Coffee and Croissants9:00-9:30Session 130 min

Welcome RemarksCo-moderated by Tim Kasten, UNEP and Marjaana Kokkonen, Finland- Opening remarks- Tour de table/welcoming new team members- Review and adoption of the agenda- Messages from funding partners’ preparatory dinner- Reflections on PAGE in the context of the 2030 Agenda

and the Paris Agreement by Nikhil Seth, United Nations Assistant Secretary-General and Executive Director of UNITAR

- Welcome remarks by Gilbert Houngbo, ILO Deputy Director-General for Field Operations & Partnerships

Documents:- Doc 1.1 Provisional

Agenda- Doc 1.2 Draft List of

Participants

9:30-10:45Session 290 min

2015 – Highlights and OutcomesCo-moderated by: Tim Scott, UNDP, and Philipp Ischer, SECO- Highlights presentation- Q&A

- Financial overview- Q&A

Expected outcomes:- Shared understanding of achievements and challenges

Documents:- Doc 2.1 Summary of

Progress 2015

10:45-11:00

Coffee break and Group Photo

11:00-12:00Session 360 min

Revised Operational StrategyCo-moderated by Steven Stone, UNEP, and Thibaut Portevin, EC- Presentation of revisions- Q&A

- Resource mobilisation- Q&A

Expected outcomes:- Feedback and suggestions received for finalization of the

strategy

Documents:- Doc 3.1 Revised

Operational Strategy,- Doc 3.2 Comments

received on Strategy- Doc 3.3 Annex of Op

Strategy - Global Logframe

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12:00 -12:45Session 445 min

New Countries Selection and Engagement OpportunitiesCo-moderated by Angus MacKay, UNITAR, and Guri Sandborg, Norway- Presentation: Summary of the review of applications by

the PAGE Secretariat and PAGE Technical Committee- Discussion

Expected outcomes:- Feedback and suggestions received on new country

applications

Documents:- Doc 4.1 Summary of

Country Applications- Doc 4.2 Barbados

Application to PAGE- Doc 4.3 Kyrgyz Republic

Application in Russian and English

- Doc 4.4 Mato Grosso Brazil Application

- Doc 4.5 Niger Application

- Doc 4.6 Central Asia Regional Application

12:45-13:4560 min

Lunch in ILO restaurant

13:45-14:15Session 530 min

Midterm EvaluationCo-moderated by Steven Stone, UNEP, and Mr. Jan Olsson Sweden- Presentation: Midterm evaluation plan

Q&AExpected outcomes:- Feedback received on midterm evaluation plans

Documents:- Doc 5.1 Midterm

Evaluation Proposal and Annex

14:15-15:00Session 645 min

Country Level—2016 Engagements and Forward PlanningCo-moderated by Frank Van Rompaey, UNIDO, and Katharina Peschen, Germany- Presentation: Highlights of 2016 plans including links to

other initiatives and partnershipsQ&A

- Discussion on opportunities for further engagements

Expected outcomes:- Shared understanding of forward planning and associated

opportunities and challenges- Identification of opportunities for collaboration

Documents:- Doc 6.1 PAGE country

level activities- Doc 6.2 Mongolia

Logframe Jan 2016- Doc 6.3 Peru Logframe

Jan 2016- Doc 6.4 Burkina Faso

Logframe Jan 2016- Doc 6.5 Senegal

Logframe Jan 2016- Doc 6.6 Mauritius

Logframe Jan 2016- Doc 6.7 Jiangsu China

Logframe Jan 2016- Doc 6.8 South Africa

Logframe Jan 2016- Doc 6.9 Ghana

Logframe Jan 201615:00-15:15

Coffee Break

15:15-16:00Session 745 min

Global Level—2016 Engagements and Forward Planning Co-moderated by Kees Van Der Ree, ILO, and Mino Kim, Republic of Korea

Documents:

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- Presentation: Highlights of 2016 plans for global activities and the second PAGE Conference

Q&AExpected outcomes:- Shared understanding of achievements, challenges, plans

and suggestions for PAGE Conference host and date

16:00-16:10Session 810 min

AOBCo-moderated by Tim Kasten, UNEP, and Gunilla Blomquist, Sweden

16:10-16:30Session 920 min

Summary and ClosingCo-moderated by Tim Kasten, UNEP, and Gunilla Blomquist, SwedenNext steps, next meeting, further communications

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