1 IMPLEMENTATION AND PROMOTION OF ENVIRONMENTAL-ECONOMIC ACCOUNTING Strategy paper First meeting of the UN Committee of Experts on Envrionmental-Economic Accounting (New York, June 2006)

2 Background UNCEEA has been established with the approval of its terms of reference by the Bureau of the United Nations Statistical Commission in November 2005.

3 Background OBJECTIVES (i) to mainstream environmental-economic accounting and related statistics; (ii) to elevate the System of Integrated Environmental and Economic Accounting (SEEA) to an international statistical standard1; and (iii) to advance the implementation of the SEEA at the global level.

4 Background Five components of work programme: coordination promotion and implementation of the accounts through the recommendations on their compilation; harmonization and dissemination of the accounts, linking the accounts to indicators and developing relationship between the users and producers; advancing the research agenda; and harmonization of data collection activities on environment and related statistics with environmental-economic accounts.

5 Current Situation environmental accounts has been most extensive in developed countries, notably EU member countries, Norway, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Few sustained initiatives in developing countries China, Indonesia, Mexico, Moldova, Philippines and South Africa.

6 Current situation Few regional program Eurostat-funded pilot programs for EU member states Natural Resource Accounting Programme for East and Southern Africa (on-going program), established in 1995, donor funded Global Initiative for Environmental Accounting proposed to GEF by the Earth Institute and World Bank

7 Suggested areas of work Link the production and release of environmental- economic accounts and time series with the national accounts Facilitate the support of the SEEA framework by international agencies Increase support and technical cooperation in developing countries Develop a communication and dissemination strategy

8 Link with national accounts Integrated compilation of accounts, tables and time seriesIntegrated compilation of accounts, tables and time series Align compilation cyclesAlign compilation cycles Align statistical unitsAlign statistical units Align dissemination cyclesAlign dissemination cycles Align data requirements in business surveys, household surveys, etc.Align data requirements in business surveys, household surveys, etc.

9 Link to national accounts Under aegis of UN CEEA (suite of standards) Launch scope and compliance survey to assess the status of implementation of environmental-economic accounting Prepare SEEA as standards for official statistics Develop a set of dissemination standard on accounts, tables and time series e.g. energy and air emission and water accounts Develop guidelines for a comprehensive data collection programme of environment and economic statistics Develop a data quality framework for environmental accounting

10 Facilitate the support for the SEEA framework by international agencies Integrate in international strategy and national development plans including PRSP (WB), toolkits (UNDP), MDGs (UNSD) as well as indicators of sustainable development.

11 Increase support and technical cooperation in developing countries Coordination of TACoordination of TA Under UNCEEAUnder UNCEEA Training materialTraining material Analysis of success and impeding factorsAnalysis of success and impeding factors Website containing a searchable archive/library

12 Develop a communication and dissemination strategy Information and promotion material; Communcation strategy, including application of technical tools (e.g. interactive presentations) for presenting the results of the accounts; Articles in magazines and newspapers to raise awareness about environmental-economic accounting; Organize events bringing together users and producers of environmental economic accounting (e.g. user-producer dialogue on water accounting, etc.)

13 Questions to the UNCEEA? What is the best mechanism to promote the implementation of environmental-economic accounting in countries? Should a sub-group of the UNCEEA be created to advise the Committee on strategies to encourage the SEEA implementation in countries and carry out the activities outlined above? Who should be participate? What would be possible activities to be undertaken to encourage the SEEA implementation in countries? What would be the best way to coordinate technical cooperation activities in countries?