Progress report for
Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PAGE)
Achievement at a glance
As the global effects of COVID-19 unfolded in 2020, PAGE worked quickly to assess and adapt to the needs of our Partner Countries in order to support green economic recovery efforts in line with SDGs including SDG 8, 9, 12, 13 and 17. These efforts will feed into the medium- to long-term progress on SDGs in addition to solving the immediate socioeconomic impacts from COVID-19. From April to June of 2020, Country Needs Assessments were initiated to support green economic recovery, and a COVID-19 Resource Hub and a Data Observatory were launched to offer guidance to countries on recovery responses. In July, PAGE announced targeted green recovery funding at the High-Level Political Forum, with support from Germany. In the months following this event, 14 PAGE Countries submitted proposals for green recovery support. For capacity building in key policy areas to generate global impact beyond PAGE countries, “Learning for a Green Recovery” e-learning Campaign was launched in September.Challenges faced in implementation
One of the biggest challenges in 2020 was staying engaged with national governments to ensure that progress towards green economy is on track as governments needed to reassess priorities to plan economic recovery and attend to public health. Additionally, due to the increased internet connectivity from COVID-19 regulations, PAGE had to redefine its global offer for knowledge sharing and learning to be more digital through on-line platforms. With the world on lockdown in 2020, the enrolments in PAGE courses have soared while PAGE face-to-face training activities were disrupted. Severe social, health and economic crises induced by COVID-19 were also part of the additional challenges faced in 2020 in partner countries. However, this was seen as an opportunity for PAGE to implement green recovery activities at the country level to build back economies and communities sustainably.PAGE has also been scaling up its operations and become more decentralized but has stayed loyal to its principles of interagency collaboration, joint work planning and integrated delivery. The evolving complexity of the partnership is a challenge as not necessarily matched with equivalent increase in agency capacity. Keeping track on work plans, sustainability strategies, delivery status and country reports with 20 countries in different stages of implementation can at times be challenging. Forward going, PAGE plans to move to multi-year workplans and with yearly reviews which still allow to adjust to changing country situations in a flexible manner.
Next Steps
By the end of 2020, a total of 15 green recovery proposals were received. Over the coming weeks, these proposed work plans for green economic recovery, which include waste management, support to Small and Medium Enterprises, youth entrepreneurship, circular economy, sustainable finance and green jobs development, will be further developed to set the programme in motion quickly in 2021. As for the next phase of the PAGE 2030 Strategy (2021-2030), PAGE plans to open as many as 10 new slots for countries to join the partnership for a five-year support package. PAGE also plans to expand its delivery at the global level, including through distinct strategic alliances with regional and subregional actors. The green recovery work links to the implementation of the 2030 Strategy through supporting long-term transformational changes in important development areas and progress on SDGs.To more broadly address operational challenges, PAGE has also initiated a review of its operational processes as part of a revision of its operational manual. This process aims to identify opportunities for increasing efficiency in PAGE operations and ways to manage complexity to make the programme fit for delivery of the next decade of action under its new PAGE 2030 Strategy.
Beneficiaries
Argentina, Barbados, Brazil (Mato Grosso State), Burkina Faso, China (Jiangsu Province), Ghana, Guatemala, Guyana, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Mauritius, Mongolia, Morocco, Peru, Senegal, South Africa, Thailand, Uruguay.
Actions
PAGE partner countries have benefited from the partnership through the support of PAGE in policy development to advance inclusive green economy transitions. The following list provides examples of policies that PAGE has supported in 2020.• Mauritius: National Program 2020-2024, Towards an Inclusive, High Income and Green Mauritius, Forging Ahead Together
• Senegal: National Platform for Green Economy
• Burkina Faso: National Green Economy Strategy Action Plan
• Kyrgyz Republic: Program for the Development of Green Economy and Coordination Commission on Green Economy and Climate Change
• Mato Grosso: Strategic Plan for the Development of Renewable Energy and Sustainable Management Plan for the Historic Center of Cuiabá
• Argentina: Green Job and Just Transition, and Sustainable Production Board
• Indonesia: Low Carbon Development Initiative Phase 2 and National Medium-Term Development Plan 2020-2024
In addition to policy development, PAGE has also helped to build individual and institutional capacity for green economy in the partner countries through targeted trainings, workshops, and online courses.