Session 4 - Presentation of results from Working Groups

Session 4 - Presentation of results from Working Groups

In the first part of the session, the three working groups from Day One - those focused on implementation aspects - reported to the plenary. The presenter from each group gave a summary of the main points discussed and highlighted the main conclusions and lessons drawn. Following the presentations, there was a period of general discussion.

Next, the three working groups from the morning of Day Two - focused on replication - made their reports to the plenary. As before, each of the three presenters summarised the key points arising from the working group's discussions as well as the general conclusions and lessons learned. There was a period of general discussion following these three presentations.

Finally, to round off the afternoon, the Moderator (Doug McCallum) brought together some of the central points raised during the six working group presentations, emphasizing those which seemed to recur frequently across the variety of experiences described. These points and comments were described under five main headings:

(1) Implementation through Demonstration Projects

· Small-scale demonstration projects for rapid implementation are now accepted as an important component of an SCP/EPM project

· But, it must always be asked, “what is being demonstrated”??

· Such projects are undertaken in order to demonstrate something about the SCP-EPM Process - to demonstrate on a small scale some key element of the process

· A small-scale improvement project is therefore not necessarily the same thing as a demonstration project

· The essential element - all too often missing - is monitoring. If a project is to demonstrate something, that project must be monitored, assessed and documented, so that some lessons may be drawn from it.

· Monitoring and assessment and documentation of demo projects has been very weak in most SCP projects

· Demonstration projects are complex and difficult to organise; they are small but they are not simple or easy; this is why it is so important that we begin more systematically to learn from our collective experience

· One consistent features from experience is that the EPM helps to establish the local sense of ownership, which is vital for success.

· Because demonstration projects are difficult, and because they attempt to demonstrate some new way of doing things, there is always a risk of failure. We must accept that some demo projects will not be successful - we must willingly take risks, and accept failure when it occurs. The important thing is, when a demo project is unsuccessful, it can demonstrate something about how the EPM process is being applied, and we can learn from that information.

(2) Implementation through Capital Investments

· Experience shows that SCP/LA21 projects can introduce a variety of successful capital investments (infrastructure services, open spaces, local improvements, community facilities, roads and transport, etc...)

· Probably the most important general lesson we have learned is the critical importance of developing and utilising new partnerships

· In particular, the importance of partnership with private business and industry has been widely accepted, and applied with success. In addition, partnerships with local community groups and social organisations have been successfully used as well.

· However, it is also clear that, to be successful, capital investments need to be based on local priorities. Externally imposed priorities (including funding-led) generally lead to less successful capital investments. So, use the EPM process to better identify and articulate local priorities and create a sense of ownership.

· The example of Shenyang and Wuhan is useful: the building up of a city urban and environmental strategy to provide a context for capital investment proposals.

(3) Implementation through Policy Initiatives

· The experience of SCP/LA21 projects shows clearly the importance of utilising a wide variety of policy approaches for implementation

· In particular, there is awareness that complex urban environmental problems demand a multi-aspect response, with many different policy approaches.

· For example, air pollution is a complex, many-factor problem which requires actions that deal with capital investments, transport policy, energy regulations, economic and financial incentives, effluent controls, etc. (The presentation from Shenyang in the first session illustrated this.)

· In general, there is a strong awareness today that economic and financial policies and instruments are essential and powerful. Five or ten years ago, in contrast, there was less willingness to use such instruments and still a greater concern for rules and regulations.

· Experience in using a variety of policies has also shown the importance of focussing Government actions on a more limited, but vital, range of facilitating and enabling roles: removing obstacles, promoting transparency, ensuring legal foundations, developing mediation, shifting to a public interest regulatory rather than direct provider role in infrastructure, etc.

· As for capital investments, the use of a variety of policy initiatives for implementing strategies also calls for development of many new partnerships.

(4) National Replication of the SCP/EPM Project

· The most important point about replication is that we must shift from a supply-led top-down approach to a demand-led bottom-up approach (a shift which seems to be underway in many countries).

· The “old” approach was for central government (or donor) to say, we have a pot of money, we will pass it out to cities for replication, and now we will organise a set of criteria and rules for determining which cities will get the money and join the replication programme.

· The “new” approach is to say, we have an excellent process here (SCP/EPM) which is important and useful for cities; any cities which want to join up and benefit from it, must show us their genuine commitment, must convince us of their readiness for the programme - and must show us that they are willing to allocate some of their own money and staff and resources to do it.

· This is indeed the crucial element: there must be genuine and demonstrated local commitment by the cities wishing to join the programme. Only then, will it be successful.

· An equally important element in pursuing replication is to acknowledge the diversity of the replication cities (each is in many ways unique) and to realise therefore that the replication programme must be flexible so that new cities adopt the general model (the basic SCP/EPM process) but apply it in ways appropriate to their own local circumstances. Avoid the “one size fits all” mentality.

· For successful replication, we also need good monitoring and assessment and documentation. There must be a good basis of information about the first round city (or cities), to provide the lessons on which to base the second round; and in particular, there must be good monitoring of the second round (replication) cities, and this must be “built in” from the beginning. This is essential, in order to learn from, and guide and manage, the replication programme toward success.

· As in other topics, for replication it is useful to rely upon a variety of partners and actors, especially those outside of the traditional central government ministries and local government departments. For example, there may be associations of local government (as in the League of Cities in the Philippines, which has a leading role in replication), or perhaps university or institute based units (as in the local academic institutions in Ibadan and Dar es Salaam, which have key roles in supporting replication).

· Unquestionably, there is much technical and other support which is necessary to help the replication cities. This will include national and international expertise, specialised and generalised training, specialised tools and documentation, information, management support, specialised equipment, public awareness campaigns, etc. For successful replication, you must ensure the availability of such support, have it well organised and planned in advance.

· It is a great mistake to push cities ahead in replication without providing the support which they need. This leads to frustration, confusion, delay, and failure. Do not try to replicate too fast - do not run beyond your means to provide support.

· Interestingly, finance is not a major problem in most cases. The more vital shortages are usually trained human resources, specialised knowledge of the EPM/SCP process, technical materials and documentation, and management capabilities.

· Successful replication should also be decentralised as far as possible. As replication proceeds, the role of central management and involvement should become less and less.

· Finally, a successful and well-integrated programme of replication will quite naturally become, as someone observed earlier, a move away from “replication” of the SCP/EPM process and toward “mainstreaming” of the process.

(5) The EPM Process

· The encouraging thing about our accumulated global experience is this: the SCP/EPM model is very robust: it has been successfully adapted and applied in a great variety of different conditions and circumstances.

· This is one of the most remarkable things about the past ten years of work in cities all over the globe: we can meet together in this way, associated with cities which are so very, very different in so many ways. But the common thread of the SCP/EPM concepts brings us together, allows us to share our diverse experiences in a meaningful way.

· Looked at a different way, the strength of the EPM process is its ability to accommodate diversity; there is no need for uniformity, other than at the level of the basic underlying concepts and approach.

· I will, however, highlight two of the most common short-comings of the SCP programme as it has worked out in practice. First, there has been inadequate monitoring - in essentially all city projects and at all stages. This has already been emphasised under many headings, and it is truly a serious problem, because it is monitoring and assessment and documentation which allows us to learn from experience - and to pass on those lessons to others.

· Second, there has been inadequate training and technical support, with too many cities initiating their activities without sufficient grounding in the EPM process, in the project management process that goes with it; and too many cities have carried on without the essential minimum inputs of technical support.

· What is so very encouraging, though, is the extraordinary enthusiasm with which the SCP/LA21 cities have proceeded, even when they have lacked some of the back-up which would have been desired. This enthusiasm, together with strategic sharing of ideas (such as through our Annual Meetings), has enabled the cities to carry on despite their problems and to be successful in so many ways.

Session 5 - Conclusion and Closing

Conclusions

A small “Drafting Team”, with members from all of the different working groups, was asked to prepare a general summary which would present the over-all results from the working groups in the form of general conclusions. The summary was organized around the main focus points of the Meeting.

Implementing Strategies

Over the preceding two days, the Meeting looked at experiences in implementing EPM strategies through demonstration projects, through capital investments, and through policy initiatives. The main conclusions drawn by the Drafting Team were as follows:

Demonstration Projects

· It has been established that demonstration projects are necessary to show case relevance of the EPM process in sustainable urban development.

· In order to draw concrete lessons from demo projects, monitoring and documentation should be carefully structured into the process.

· Emphasis should be placed on participation, ownership and where possible, self financing projects should be selected.

· Demonstration projects can be started at any stage of the EPM process and would be more successful if they take on priority community issues which affect large numbers of people.

· Demonstration projects should not be a one time activity but continuous throughout the process with on-going consultation and sensitisation of stakeholders

Capital Investments

· Appropriate fiscal policies should be evolved to attract investors while the role of Local Authorities in the provision of infrastructure and environmental management should be supported and strengthened.

· Technical support should be directed at creating and strengthening capacity (within Local Authorities) to prepare feasible investment proposals.

· Involvement of communities ensures ownership and maintenance of the projects. However, communities have limited capacity to support implementation of large investments, such investments have to be split or phased into small components for easier management. Action plans should be commensurate with resources that can be mobilised. Unfunded action plans are not much better than no action plans

Policy Initiatives

· It was considered necessary that progressive institutional structures should be established and nurtured for good governance at local levels.

· Participatory structures, through legislation, clear procedures for decision-making and information base should be enhanced to promote the EPM process.

· The EPM process should be integrated into existing institutional arrangements and anchored to budgetary process, particularly at local or city level.

· With regards to resource management, it was emphasised that there is need to shift from environmental protection to sustainable development within the context of human settlements development. This once again underscores the robustness of the SCP/LA21 approach, which focuses on development-environment interactions.

· Economic incentives should be applied where possible as a means of encouraging investors and forcing polluters to seek efficient ways for reducing pollution.

Replicating the EPM process

Participants in working groups also shared experiences on replication of the EPM process at national as well as regional and global levels. The Drafting Team presented a summary of the issues that emerged from these discussions.

Replicating EPM at the National Level

· It was agreed that emphasis should be laid on developing a national policy to support replication and legislative frameworks to enhance the adoption of the EPM process

· It was agreed that no standardised criteria could be set for replication, but the process should be demand driven with a focus on cities with development pressure and political will and commitment.

· It is important that Local Authority Associations be involved in national replication plans and the process

· The need to strengthen collaborative efforts with other programmes/projects that are related in concept and principles was also recommended.

· Participation in the SCP/EPM process should be based on city demonstrations of commitment both politically and financially. Ability and willingness to contribute financially to the process would be critical.

· Decentralisation of support functions/backstopping through collaboration with national/regional institutions with capacity to promote the EPM process is necessary.

· There is a need to encourage competition among interested cities and to strengthen the institutional framework for replication at national and local levels.

· It is necessary to support documentation in different languages and format as well as to create access to information technology (Internet, GIS, EMIS)

· There is a need for networking to strengthen linkages among participating cities.

At the Global Level

· Continuation and intensification of technical backstopping and support functions to national institutions and evolving regional capacities through the global programmes of the SCP and LA21.

· Facilitate information exchange between and among cities at global level, including documentation and access to information technology.

Reflections on the Meeting

The next part of the session comprised two presentations from UNCHS. Mr. Ole Lyse, Acting Head of the Urban Environment Unit and Coordinator of the Sustainable Cities Programme, highlighted the global experiences of the SCP and related initiatives, in terms of both global substantive activities (tool development, training, information support activities, networking etc.) and geographic spread of demonstration cities and national replications.

Mr. Lyse explained that the core team will continue to assist a number of new cities still in the pipeline to join the programme. However as more national replications start taking place, the demand for technical support increases beyond the capacity of the small SCP staff group in Nairobi. There is an increasing demand that experienced participants help as much as possible in responding to national requirements, especially in the early stages of environmental profiling, city consultations and working group formulation. Strategies such as strengthening local capacities through using a 'Training of Trainers' approach, and a more rapid utilization of local resource institutions must be intensified. The coordinator cited encouraging emerging trends and potentials in terms of training, backstopping and even the integration of EPM into urban planning courses. These are evident in the experiences of countries like Egypt, India, Nigeria, the Philippines, Senegal and Tanzania. Further interest has also been shown by Institutions in, for example, Kenya, South Africa, Thailand and Zambia.

A future five year global programme is awaiting agreement and support from the Dutch government. Its vision and focus include strong elements of knowledge management (better documentation) and the building and anchoring of regional resource networks as mentioned above. EPM/SCP tools have proven useful and development must continue with the involvement of relevant and interested institutions and other programmes where possible, including adaptation to local conditions and translation to local languages. The programme core team will also continue to facilitate electronic networking, news and information on relevant subject matters, whilst experienced cities are encouraged to establish and link their own websites to the global SCP website. A facility to help demonstrations on certain environmental improvements at city level has also been proposed in the future programme.

In the field, there is need to improve the impact of demonstration/replication at all levels through, for example, better local resource mobilization and the inclusion of a 'seed' environment trust fund in projects from the beginning, which would promote 'fast-track' demonstration activities and help to build credibility and test the new approach for early upscaling citywide. Local authority institutional anchoring, ownership and resource commitment must be better ensured from day one, in order to avoid creating the 'project island' phenomenon. Experience shows that some kind of 'technical and coordination support unit' is important in the initial stages of national replication programmes.

Finally, the growing difficulty in mobilising resources at all levels was raised by the coordinator. This is a fact both for operational activities at the city level and for maintaining global support activities. City authorities and national governments were urged to recognize this reality, and to raise and discuss it with their respective delegations to international meetings such as the Habitat Commissions and UNEP Governing Councils in order to join forces and seek innovative ways and means to maintain and expand support inputs.

Mr. David Kithakye, Human Settlements Advisor with Habitat's Regional Office for Africa and the Arab States (ROAAS), then provided a regional perspective of SCP and LA21 activities. Picking up themes presented by participants from African and Arab states, he highlighted the growing importance of urban environmental issues in Africa, underlining that population growth and the attendant urbanisation process are putting heavy pressure on natural resources and very fragile economies. However, the fruitful collaboration between the SCP and ROAAS in both normative and operational work has yielded very positive concrete results in many countries in the region, and is today contributing to shaping policy formulation and action plans at the national level in countries including Tanzania, Nigeria, Ghana and Egypt. Referring to an earlier (1999) evaluation of SCP projects in Africa, Mr. Kithakye also stressed the need for improved implementation of urban environmental strategies - the core subject matter of this Meeting.

Mr. Kithakye also noted that good governance is closely entwined with good environmental policies, and that this linkage leads to stronger advocacy and a wider participation of civil society in governance issues. Good governance in Africa, together with clear performance indicators, benchmarks, tools and instruments for decision-making and replication will be critical for the sustainable development of the region. Mr. Kithakye closed with an overview of SCP/ROAAS activities in Africa, and reiterated ROAAS support for the programme.

The final part of the Session comprised the closing of the Meeting. Hon. Patricia Nawa, Mayor of Lusaka, speaking on behalf of the participants of the Meeting, presented a vote of thanks to the Cape Town hosts. Mr. Hassane Bendahmane (Chief, Joint UNEP/UNCHS Unit) reinforced this vote of thanks, speaking on behalf of UNEP and UNCHS. Both speakers emphasised the friendly hospitality of Cape Town and commended as well its eagerness to address its many problems in an open and constructive way. Finally, the Government of Egypt representative Mr. Samir Gharib (Supervisor of the Technical Office, Ministry of Local Government, Egypt) added his own and his Government's thanks to the host city and to the UN. Noting the important role of the meeting not only professionally but equally importantly as a means of building contacts between cities and friends, and between people from different countries, he offered on behalf of the Government of Egypt to host the next SCP Annual Meeting.

The SCP/LA21 2000 Meeting was then formally closed.

Annexes

Case Study Abstracts

· Colombo, Sri Lanka
· Ibadan, Nigeria
· Lusaka, Zambia
· Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
· Shenyang, China
· Ismailia, Egypt
· Cape Metropolitan Council, South Africa
· Philippines, National Replication
· Urban Authorities Support Unit, Tanzania
· Nigeria, National Programme

Discussant Presentations

· Demonstration Projects of the Accra Sustainable Programme

· Implementing Environmental Improvement Demonstration Projects through Investment - Cape Metropolitan Area, City of Tygerberg

· Colombo - Compost Bins as an Alternative Solution for the Household Solid Waste Problem in Urban Areas

· Zanzibar Sustainable Programme: Case Study on Implementing and Replicating/Upscaling of Demonstration Projects

· Colombo - Implementing Strategies through Capital Investments

· Essaouira - Local Agenda 21

· Experience of Mwanza Municipality in Implementing Sustainable Development Strategies Building Institutions for Urban Governance in Post-Conflict Regions: Applying SCP/EPM Concepts in the Town of Berbera on the Gulf of Aden, Somalia

· Nakuru Strategic Structure Plan - a policy initiative to support implementation strategies for sustainable urban development

· Policy Initiatives: International agreements for a better urban environment - UNEP

· Replication of the Environmental Planning and Management Process in Senegal - Examples from the towns of Rufisque and Louga (IAGU)

· Identifying, Clarifying and Prioritizing Air Quality Issues - Shenyang, China

· Setting up a National EPM Replication System Derived from the Experiences of the Demonstration Cities - Local EPM Project Philippines

· Sustainable Dar es Salaam Programme: Development and Experiences

Speeches

· Vote of thanks on behalf of the participants of SCP/LA21 2000
· Vote of thanks and offer to host the next annual meeting of SCP/LA21

Participant List

· City Representatives
· Support Programmes
· United Nations Organisations
· Resource Institutions
· Government Representation
· UEF Secretariat