Regional: Supporting Implementation of Environment-Related Sustainable Development Goals in Asia and the Pacific

Agriculture, natural resources and rural development / Forestry - Land-based natural resources management - Water-based natural resources management

Energy / Energy efficiency and conservation

Water and other urban infrastructure and services / Urban sanitation - Urban solid waste management

Implementation of environment-related SDGs will be critical for continued development in the region. Environmental degradation and climate change threaten development gains, with the poor suffering most. At the third Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development in April 2016, which initiated a regional dialogue on implementing Agenda 2030, participants identified environmental challenges to be prioritized in the region, including degradation of ecosystems, unsustainable resource use, air and water pollution, and threats posed by climate change and natural disasters. In providing DMCs support to implement environment-related SDGs, policy and institutional coherence, data monitoring, and accountability will need to be addressed at the national level. For example, governments will need capacity to analyze and evaluate policy options based on environmental as well as economic and social criteria, and to monitor policy impacts and progress against targets. Measurement and monitoring for environmental sustainability progress is the weakest among the sustainable development pillars (economic development, social development, and environmental protection) because of insufficient production of environment statistics, impeding DMCs' ability to determine baseline conditions and set targets. Financing is also a concern since, compared with other priorities such as basic services or infrastructure provision, less incentives exist to invest in environmental sustainability, as it is often difficult to demonstrate returns on investments.

DMCs have varying capacities and will have differing needs based on national circumstances and development priorities. Consultations undertaken by the project team indicate DMCs require capacity building support for environment-related SDG issues and access to finance. Tools and methodologies to mainstream the SDGs will have to be identified and/or developed considering applicability and priorities in DMCs. Helping DMCs identify priorities and set targets for environment-related SDGs will also assist ADB in identifying targets under the forthcoming Strategy 2030. Upstream support for environment-related SDGs will create opportunities to support sector investments in sustainable infrastructure and resource conservation (SDG12) and natural resources management (SDGs 14 and 15), including co-benefits in climate change adaptation and mitigation (SDG13).7 The national policies, strategies, and programs to be identified by the DMCs as necessary in meeting environment-related SDGs can be areas for follow-on ADB support through policy advice, TA, projects, and knowledge services.

Regional stocktaking and review undertaken, technical guidance materials prepared, and knowledge-sharing workshop undertaken

Recommendations for mainstreaming environment-related SDGs in three pilot DMCs developed and dissemination workshop held

Output 1:Regional stocktaking and review undertaken, technical guidance materials prepared, and knowledge-sharing workshop undertaken

- The TA team carried out desk study and interviews with UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), UN Environment, ADB operations departments and resident missions, and other development partners to gain a regional overview of progress on the integration of environment-related SDGs. The TA team produced a draft stocktaking and review report of 15 countries with an emphasis on SDGs 12, 14 and 15.

In parallel, a draft tools inventory was developed to help policymakers identify suitable approaches, tools and methodologies to understand the critical interlinkages and meaningfully integrate select environment-related SDGs and targets into their development planning and implementation activities with an emphasis on SDGs 12, 14 and 15.

A Regional Knowledge Sharing Workshop was conducted in Bangkok, Thailand on 20-21 February 2018 in collaboration with regional partners such as the UN ESCAP and UN Environment. About 104 participants from 19 DMCs coming from the government ministries working on national policy planning, environment and pollution control/resource efficiency, international development organizations including UN (ESCAP, Environment, PEI, and UNDP), civil society, private sector and NGOs attended the event.

In July 2018, the Workshop Proceedings Report from the Regional Knowledge Sharing Workshop was published. A summary paper on the Regional Stocktaking of the environment-related SDGs in Asia and the Pacific presenting the results of stocktaking of 15 countries' national and organizational responses to the environment-related SDGs is also being finalized.

Output 2: Recommendations for mainstreaming environment-related SDGs in three pilot DMCs developed and dissemination workshop held

- Currently, Phase 2 activities are currently proposed in Mongolia, Philippines and Viet Nam. The recruitment of consultants to support the in-country implementation is ongoing.