OECD Environment Working Papers

ISSN :
1997-0900 (online)
DOI :
10.1787/19970900
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This series is designed to make available to a wider readership selected studies on environmental issues prepared for use within the OECD. Authorship is usually collective, but principal authors are named. The papers are generally available only in their original language English or French with a summary in the other if available.
 

Assessing Environmental Management Capacity: Towards a Common Reference Framework You or your institution have access to this content

Authors:
OECD
Publication Date
14 May 2009
Bibliographic information
No.:
8
Pages
113
DOI
10.1787/224131752784

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The Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness calls upon donor and partner countries to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of country systems in a way that guarantees ownership and sustainable results. Within this context, the current paper provides a synthesis of major elements and approaches of institutional assessment that may be applied to environmental management. It suggests that while a large number of diagnostic tools are in use, their level of elaboration is not sufficient for systemic sector-specific capacity assessments that would match partners’ and donors’ needs. In order to facilitate the improvement of these tools, the paper provides an inventory of core functions for environmental management. This inventory may be used by those involved in capacity assessments to consider more amply specifics of the environmental sector. Each function will need to be associated with benchmarks reflecting the multifaceted nature of institutional capacity. The evolving approaches to environmental management, as well as changes in the international and country context, impose the need to regularly update both the list of functions and complementary benchmarks.
Keywords:
capacity assessment and development, government functions, natural resources, environmental management, environmental policy implementation, development co-operation
JEL Classification:
  • O13: Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth / Economic Development / Agriculture; Natural Resources; Energy; Environment; Other Primary Products
  • O17: Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth / Economic Development / Formal and Informal Sectors; Shadow Economy; Institutional Arrangements
  • Q01: Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics / General / Sustainable Development
  • Q56: Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics / Environmental Economics / Environment and Development; Environment and Trade; Sustainability; Environmental Accounts and Accounting; Environmental Equity; Population Growth
  • Q58: Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics / Environmental Economics / Government Policy