What we do / Environment and Energy
Although Lebanon has made considerable progress in protecting its environment since the early nineties, many critical environmental challenges remain, some of which were recently exacerbated by the 2006 "July War". Furthermore, the pressure from economic and social activities on the limited natural resources available in Lebanon is difficult to control. Amongst the most pertinent environment issues are poor land management (including biodiversity loss), high carbon dioxide and ozone depleting substance emissions, deficient solid waste management, water-related problems and high pollution loads.
The Environment and Energy (E&E) Programme in UNDP Lebanon assists the people of Lebanon and the government through the different public agencies in strengthening institutional capacity and providing policy support for more effective environmental and energy management. Ultimately, the programme aims to help the country meet its Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), more specifically Goal 7, which relates to environmental sustainability, and all the international environmental conventions to which the Government of Lebanon is committed. The programme collaborates with a variety of donors and partners, including NGOs, the private sector, and academia, to ensure that environment and energy considerations are mainstreamed into national agendas. Recently, support was also provided within the larger UN early recovery programme to remedy the environmental damage that resulted from the 2006 July War, while simultaneously assisting local communities to restore livelihoods without increasing the pressure on natural resources.
The programme works through the implementation of several nationally executed projects in a variety of sectors such as:
1.) The industrial sector for the reduction of Ozone Depleting Substances and the implementation of energy audits to reduce green house gas emissions;
2.) the agricultural sector for combating desertification and mitigating flood risks while increasing agricultural activities, and promoting medicinal and aromatic plant production;
3.) the energy sector by promoting energy efficiency, with a view to reducing the financial burden on the government while reducing carbon emissions.
In most of these projects, gender aspects are taken into consideration to ensure that equal opportunities are provided to both men and women. For example, some projects work specifically with rural women cooperatives and active women organizations in different geographical areas of the country.
During the past few years, the programme has made considerable progress in many of its individual projects. Overall, the programme has successfully moved from smaller, scattered projects into a more consolidated and structured outcome-based approach. It has successfully raised national public awareness and has extensively engaged the private sector. Also noteworthy is the programme's breakthrough in mainstreaming environment and energy into key ministries such as the Ministry of Finance; and into national reform agendas.
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Lebanon
