The Global Environment Facility (GEF), in coordination with the Gambia National Environment Agency, is organizing an Expanded Constituency Workshop for 17 West African countries to engage with key stakeholders and increase awareness on the latest GEF programs and policies.
The workshop will share GEF experiences and lessons on how to use an approach of integrated programming to achieve impact at scale and how to increase knowledge sharing and build capacity. Specific objectives include:
• Providing information on efforts funded by the GEF family of funds, including the GEF Trust Fund, the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund, the Least Developed Countries Fund, and the Small Grants Programme.
• Exchange lessons learned on cross-cutting themes leading to successful implementation, stakeholder engagement, and private sector involvement.
• Engage one-on-one with countries to discuss their interests and adaptively managing their GEF portfolios.
The GEF is a family of funds for the environment and a financial mechanism for six multilateral conventions. With GEF support, countries address the root causes of challenges as they strive for international environmental goals.
Since 1991, the GEF has steadfastly supported African countries to pursue environmental goals for their sustainable, nature-positive development through over 2,000 projects and $7.7 billion in funding that leveraged an additional $50 billion in co-finance.
“The GEF is committed to supporting African countries to address their critical environmental and development goals — conserving vital ecosystems and biodiversity, restoring degraded lands, addressing water scarcity and drought, building greener and more resilient cities and food systems, and mitigating chemical and waste pollution, including plastics,” said Fred Boltz, Head of Programming at the GEF. “This event is a precious opportunity to build knowledge and capacity, to strengthen the GEF Partnership, and to strategically plan investments for maximum impact towards these goals with our key partners from governments, GEF agencies, and civil society across 17 countries of West Africa.”
The ECW will take place over four days with one full day dedicated to a field visit. The three days of meetings will include overview presentations, learning stations, and interactive activities on integration, as well as bilateral discussions with country representatives.
Participants include GEF focal points, Convention focal points for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Convention on Biological Diversity, United Nation Convention to Combat Desertification, Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, and Minamata Convention on Mercury. Also invited are representatives of civil society, youth, Indigenous Peoples, and GEF agencies.
Since becoming a member of the GEF in 1994, The Gambia has benefited significantly from its support through funding for national and regional projects addressing conservation, climate change mitigation and adaptation, land degradation, chemicals management, and international waters.
Notable projects include support to the Great Green Wall Initiative, Climate Smart Rural WASH Development Project, biodiversity enhancement in protected areas, and strengthening of institutional frameworks for environmental governance, amongst others. These interventions have contributed greatly to the country’s environmental sustainability and socio-economic development.
Hosting this important event will enhance The Gambia’s visibility as a committed partner in global environmental stewardship, and promote knowledge exchange between The Gambia and other Sahel and Coastal West African Countries on best practices for sustainable development.
It will also foster stronger partnerships between government, development partners, and civil society for environmental and climate resilience action, and provide an opportunity to showcase our national achievements and ongoing initiatives supported by GEF and other partners.
About the GEF:
The Global Environment Facility (GEF) includes several multilateral funds working together to address the planet’s most pressing challenges in an integrated way. Its financing helps developing countries address complex challenges and work towards meeting international environmental goals. Over the past three decades, the GEF has provided more than $26 billion in financing, primarily as grants, and mobilized another $153 billion for country-driven priority projects. For additional information please visit https://www.thegef.org/.
For media information please contact Alexandre Pinheiro Rego at aregoi@thegef.org
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