Global Environment Facility (GEF); 6th Replenishment

Description What is done in the programme or project and why, what results are pursued, who benefits from the activities and who are involved in the implementation.

The Global Environment Facility was established in October 1991 as a pilot program in the World Bank to assist in the protection of the global environment. In 1994, at the Rio Earth Summit, the GEF was restructured and moved out of the World Bank system to become a permanent, separate institution. As part of the restructuring, the GEF was entrusted to become the financial mechanism for both the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. The GEF subsequently was also selected to serve as financial mechanism for three more international conventions: The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (2001), the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (2003) and the Minamata Convention on Mercury (2013). The GEF strives to achieve global environmental benefits by supporting developing countries in their efforts. After various chnages agreed upon during last two replenishment negotiations the work is focused around five thematic focal areas: biodiversity; climate change mitigation; chemicals and waste; international waters; and land degradation. Starting from the fifth replenishment cycle the GEF has also strengthened its work on sustainable forest management by creating a targeted program. Furthermore, an integrated approach pilot was established during the sixth replenishment negotiations to support activities in recipient countries that can help them meet commitments to more than one global convention or thematic area by tackling underlying drivers of environmental degradation. The GEF is a network organization. It is composed of independent secretariat and evaluation office, the World Bank acts as a trustee channelling project support to implementing entities such as to the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP). Finland has supported the GEF from the very beginning. The support to the GEF was 57.30 million euros during the fifth cycle (2010-2014) and 65 million euros during this round.