Yerevan, Armenia September 2012

What is STAP? In 1994, the GEF Instrument sets up STAP – “UNEP shall establish, in consultation with UNDP and the World Bank and on the basis of guidelines and criteria established by the Council, the Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel (STAP) as an advisory body to the Facility. UNEP shall provide the STAP’s Secretariat and shall operate as the liaison between the Facility and the STAP.” (Instrument for the Establishment of the Restructured Global Environment Facility, 1994 and 2008)

What is STAP? The Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel (STAP) of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) provides strategic and independent advice on projects, programs, and policies. STAP is administered by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and it is supported by a Secretariat in Washington, D.C

Who is STAP? Thomas E. Lovejoy, Chair Jakob Granit International Waters N.H. Ravindranath Acting Climate Change Sandra Diaz Biodiversity Henk Bouwman Chemicals & POPs Michael Stocking Advisor to STAP Chair Anand Patwardhan Adaptation Anette Cowie Climate Change

CBD UNFCC CCD International Waters CEO / CHAIRMAN GEF SECRETARIAT COUNCIL ASSEMBLY W.B. Donor Replenishment Group GEFEO ADB UNIDO FAO NGOS Multilateral Fund of Montreal Protocol STAP POPS IAs / EAs UNEP EBRD IFAD IDB Af DB UNDP 1/04

Strategic advice Scan emerging global environmental issues Advise on cross-cutting thematic areas, such as adaptation to climate change, sustainable forest management, and chemicals management GEF-5 focal area strategies – 2009, work on GEF-6 will start in 2013 “How to” develop/implement projects, or programs

Recent STAP advisory products

Policy advice Learning objectives (RBM) – ongoing Targeted research – ongoing Criteria for focal area set asides – 2010 STAR (choice of indicators) – 2009

Operational advice: Project and program advice  Develop methodologies for the GEF  Ensure the scientific and technical quality of  GEF projects and programmatic approaches  Responsible for targeted research  (project reviews and policy review – Principles for GEF  financing of Targeted Research, 1997)  Collaborate with the GEF Evaluation Office (focal area studies, assessment of quality at entry)

Overview of STAP PIF screens Screening versus reviewing STAP’s rating categories – Consent Minor revision Major revision

PIF sections commonly screened by STAP 1. Project Framework (Part I: B.) 2. Baseline and problem statement (Part II: B.1) 3. Incremental activities and global environmental benefits (B.2) 4. Socioeconomic benefits and gender within the context of global environmental benefits (B.3) 5. Risks, including climate change risks (B.4) 6. Key stakeholders (B.5) 7. Related initiatives (B.6)

Project framework: a STAP perspective  Project objective: The purpose of the project and its intent to generate global environmental benefits. STAP: Is the objective clear and consistent with the problem statement?  Project Outcome: The likely, or achieved, short-term and medium- term effects of an intervention’s output (e.g. “integrated landscape management practices adopted by local communities”). STAP : Do the outcomes encompass important global environmental benefits and are they likely to be generated?

Project framework: a STAP perspective (cont’d)  Project Outputs 1,2 : The products and services which result from an intervention (e.g. “integrated natural resource management tools and methodologies are developed and implemented”). STAP: Is the sum of the outputs likely to contribute to the outcomes? 1 The activities that yield the products and services can be organized into groups or components to maximize coordination and quality of outputs. 2 Output indicators tells us what we are going to measure and not what is to be achieved (example - # of tools developed)

Project baseline: A STAP’s perspective The baseline is the value of indicators prior to the start of the project, and should be supported by verifiable data that is current and accurate, and with references to published sources where feasible.* STAP: Is the baseline identified clearly? Does it present a feasible basis from which to measure and monitor global environmental change, including development outcomes? …Has a focus on scientific baselines. **GEF Secretariat: What would happen without the GEF? (“business as usual scenario” - PIF stage); and appropriate baseline data in project framework + tracking tools (CEO endorsement)

Project baselines: STAP’s perspective (cont’d)  Quantitative baselines should be included to the fullest extent possible (even if inferred)  In the event of no quantitative baseline at PIF– make reference to tracking tool, or specify a timeline to collect data  Qualitative baselines can be supported by current and accurate scientific references, and/or rigorous local unpublished evidence (‘grey literature’)

Incremental activities “Incremental reasoning defines the role for the GEF in the context of the expected global environmental benefits from a proposed project. It is based on an assessment of the value added by involving the GEF.” (GEF/C.31/12) STAP looks for…  Are the incremental activities scientifically justified? (supported by scientific references, rigorous local unpublished evidence)

Incremental activities (cont’d)  Are the global environmental benefits defined explicitly? (indicators, or methodologies, to measure and monitor global environmental benefits)  Are the benefits truly global environmental benefits, and are they measurable? (carbon sequestration not sustainable land management; improvements in land cover not benefits to ecosystem services)

Socioeconomic benefits & gender STAP looks for…  Are the socioeconomic benefits, and their contribution to global environmental benefits, defined explicitly? (supported by scientific references)  Is gender adequately accommodated throughout the proposal? (disaggregated data; interventions designed to target specifically the different needs of men and women; socio-cultural considerations that may impact on the inclusion of either gender in activities)

Project risks STAP looks for…  Are the risks valid and comprehensive?  Are the risks associated with the project design, or resource mobilization (internal)?  Are the risks associated with unforeseen circumstances (external)?

Climate change risks  STAP considers a number of questions, including –  Is the project location in a region of climate risks?  Are the project objectives, or outputs, prone to climate change risks over the period 2020s, 2030s, 2050s and has the PIF addressed the risks of impacts of climate change?  Has the PIF considered resilience enhancement practices and measures to the projected climate risks and impacts?

Related initiatives STAP looks for…  Are the project developers tapping into relevant knowledge and learning generated by other projects, including GEF projects?  Is there an adequate mechanism to feed the lessons learned from earlier initiatives into the proposed project?

To consider…  What are the main challenges in developing scientifically and technically viable PIFs? (data access?)  What regional networks, institutions, other options are available to develop data and address data gaps that contribute to global environmental outcomes?  Could addressing a specific data need contribute to the knowledge and learning of the GEF? (use of targeted research window)  From design to implementation – the focus is measuring and tracking global environmental outcomes : project level – focal area – GEF corporate knowledge and learning

Thank you! Lev Neretin