Shri Suresh P Prabhu, Minister for Environment & Forests, participated in the 67th Governing Council of South Asia Cooperative Environment Programme (SACEP) on April 22, 1998 in Male, Maldives. SACEP is a regional body consisting of the member countries viz., India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Pakistan, Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh with headquarters at Colombo, Sri Lanka. The Governing Council discussed various projects of SACEP, financial matters of SACEP and regional cooperation in the field of environment.
The Ministry of Environment & Forests has set up a Project Steering Committee to approve project proposals under the Chairmanship of Shri Nirmal Andrews, Joint Secretary (International Cooperation). GEF NGO Small Grants Programme of GEF is to provide support for small scale activities that address the problems of global warming, loss of biodiversity, pollution of international waters and depletion of the ozone layer. Activities that combat deser-tification may also be supported in so far as they relate to the four priority areas. The principal objective of the Small Grants Programme is to identify, finance and hence demonstrate community based approaches that could reduce threats to the global environment if they were replicated widely overtime. In the pilot phase of the GEF NGO Programme, the GEF provided US$ 3 lakhs and 24 projects were under implementation.
In the second phase, India has been allocated US$ 6,00,000 to facilitate the implementation of the Programme. Apart from this, additional funds of US$ 7 lakhs will be provided by the UNDP under CCF-I Programme. Development Alternatives, New Delhi has been identified by this Ministry as the host NGO which will be responsible for the dissemination of information, extending assistance in project preparation, release of funds for project execution, monitoring of progress in implementation etc. For details please contact:
National Coordinator
Development Alternatives
B-32, Tara Crescent
Qutab Institutional Area
New Delhi - 110 016
The India Canada Environment Facility (ICEF) was established in 1993 following the signing of MoU between the Government of India and Government of Canada. ICEF operates as a registered society. It is managed jointly by representatives from the Government of India and Canada.
Indian organisations / institutions working in the environment sector, both NGOs and Government agencies and, in certain cases, private sector firms, may apply to ICEF for a grant to implement a project consistent with the specific priorities and criteria set out by ICEF given below. Decisions on applications are made by the ICEF Joint Project Steering Committee (JPSC). For details please contact:
Mr Alan Ferguson
Project Director
ICEF, D1/56 Vasant Vihar
New Delhi 110 057
ICEF Mandate and Objectives
The primary focus of ICEF is to develop natural resource and environmental managerial capacity within government, NGO/community organisations, and the private sector as the basis for addressing specific natural resource and environmental problems in the water and energy sectors in India.
ICEF s mandate is to:
Four capacity-building objectives are used to guide ICEF activities (which include several cross-cutting objectives such as poverty alleviation and gender equity):
Institutional Development: establishing or strengthening institutions for addressing specific resource management issues in the water and energy sectors, particularly where there is a need for community-based management of common property resources and improved management skills in government and non-government organisations.
Conservation and Restoration: undertaking specific physical activities, excluding major infrastructure investment, which will redress particular environmental degradation problems and which demonstrate desirable resource and environmental management practices with potential for replication in other parts of India and for long-term sustainability.
Policy and National Dialogue: providing analysis and discussion which will have an impact on national and state policies and related legislation and regulations, and which will heighten public awareness of the issues and alternatives, contribute to professional development, and disseminate good resource and environmental management practices.
Technology Adoption: under-taking activities related to adoption and dissemination of pollution abatement, energy conservation and renewable energy technologies, including technical support, training, market development and some limited capital cost contribution, where it will stimulate economically viable, socially accepted, and sustained use of these technologies.
Project Criteria
Project funding under ICEF is open to government, non-government, and private sector organisations. Proposals may be considered in various sub-sectors related to:
Water and Land
Energy
Education
ICEF s current priorities for future projects are in the water quality and energy sectors.
ICEF is particularly supportive of applications that can demonstrate: community participation in the planning, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation; direct environmental benefits through physical improvements; a promising or innovative approach to an existing issue; an integrated resource management approach to the issue.
Project proposals are evaluated on the following key criteria:
ICEF does not fund: