PROJECT BRIEF
1. IDENTIFIERS
PROJECT NUMBER:
[Implementing Agency Project number to be assigned]
PROJECT NAME:
Integrating Watershed and Coastal Area Management
(IWCAM) in the Small Island Developing States of the
Caribbean.
PROJECT DURATION:
5 Years
IMPLEMENTING AGENCIES:
United Nations Environment Programme
United Nations Development Programme
EXECUTING AGENCIES:
The Secretariat of the Cartagena Convention
The Caribbean Environmental Health Institute
REQUESTING COUNTRIES:
Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Cuba,
Grenada, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica,
Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago.
ELIGIBILITY:
The countries are eligible under para. 9 (b) of the GEF
Instrument
GEF FOCAL AREA:
International Waters
IW STRATEGIC PRIORITIES:
IW 3 Undertake Innovative Demonstrations for Reducing
Contaminants and Addressing Water Scarcity
GEF PROGRAMMING FRAMEWORK: OP 9 - Integrated Land and Water Multiple Focal Area
2. SUMMARY
Small Island Developing States (SIDS) have special conditions and needs that were identified for
international attention in the Barbados Programme of Action for the Sustainable
Development of Small Island Developing States and through the World Summit for
Sustainable Development's Johannesburg Plan of Implementation. In its Operational
Programme 9: SIDS Component, the GEF recognised the unique water-related issues that are
common to most SIDS, e.g. coastal area management and biodiversity, sustainable management
of regional fish stocks, tourism development, protection of water supplies, land and marine-
based sources of pollution, and vulnerability to climate change. Consequently GEF has
confirmed the eligibility of international waters projects that address the special conditions and
needs of SIDS. These projects are included in the operational programmes for two reasons:
1. Integrated freshwater basin-coastal area management is essential for a sustainable future
for these island states, and
2. This approach can produce benefits in other GEF focal areas, especially biodiversity,
climate change and land degradation.
Key features of each regional SIDS International Waters project are improvements in integrated
freshwater basin-coastal area management on each island of the regional groupings of SIDS, a
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multiple GEF focal area approach, testing of mechanisms to facilitate broad stakeholder
participation, and a coordinated, approach among Executing and Implementing Agencies
according to the comparative advantage of each agency.
The overall objective of this Project is to strengthen the commitment and capacity of the
participating countries to implement an integrated approach to the management of watersheds
and coastal areas. The long-term goal is to enhance the capacity of the countries to plan and
manage their aquatic resources and ecosystems on a sustainable basis. This will be addressed
within the context of the currently limited economic opportunities, coupled with an urgent need
for development and expansion of trade and commerce, within the Caribbean SIDS. In particular,
project activities will be focusing on improvements in integrated freshwater basin-coastal area
management on each island of the regional groupings of Caribbean SIDS.
The project recognises the integrated and interlinked nature of watersheds and coastal areas in
small islands and aims to develop a more sector-coordinated management approach, both at the
national and the regional level, with a strong emphasis on an expanded role for all stakeholders
within a participatory management framework. The project further recognises the constraints on
such an integrated and sectoral-coordinated management approach within an environment, which
lacks applicable and cost-effective solutions to many of the primary threats and their root causes
at the grass-roots level.
Paramount to addressing the lack of solutions available to SIDS on key issues such island-based
sources of pollution, water resource conservation and management, unsustainable land-use and
inappropriate agricultural practices, etc. is the inclusion of a major project component delivering
on-the-ground demonstrations targeted at national hotspots where specific threats to national,
regional and global environmental amenities have been identified. These demonstrations stress
the need for development of a cross sectoral management approach and address the requirements
for institutional and infrastructure realignment and policy reform; adoption of modalities for
sectoral participation and coordination; capacity building; linkages to social and economic root
causes of environmental degradation; and the overall need for sustainability. One of the critical
requirements of these demonstrations is to develop mechanisms for the replication of activities
and for the transfer of best lessons and practices, both nationally and regionally.
In view of the urgency for policy and legislative reforms, alongside institutional improvements,
the project will focus one component specifically at these issues. In particular, high priority will
be given to assisting the countries to meet the commitments required in the ratification process
for important regional legal agreements such as the Cartagena Convention and its protocols
(especially the Protocol on Land-Based Sources of Pollution).
Consequently, the project aims to demonstrate the development of an effective regional strategy
for IWCAM, in parallel with demonstrating and replicating geographically targeted national
solutions to common Caribbean SIDS issues, through a series of interconnected components that
capture best practices and translate these into replicable actions.
The Project consists of 5 components. These will undertake regional management, coordination
and evaluation of IWCAM objectives; demonstrate technological and management approaches
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and policy and legislative reforms within selected hotspots; identify impact indicators for
measuring IWCAM efficacy and implement a programme of measurement and monitoring which
will drive policy reforms; and establish networking sharing of knowledge, and partnerships
within the Caribbean SIDS for IWCAM.
3. COSTS AND FINANCING (MILLION US$)
GEF:
Project
: US$
13.383
PDF
-
B
: US$
0.608
Subtotal GEF
:
US$ 13.991
Co-financing: Sec. of Cartagena (in cash & kind) :
US$ 3.075
UNEP (in cash & kind) US$ 0.116
CEHI (in cash & kind)
:
US$ 1.908
UNDP (in cash & kind)
:
US$ 1.771
Governments (in cash & kind)
:
US$ 82.899
NGOs (in cash & kind)
:
US$ 7.091
Private
Sector
US$
1.409
Subtotal Co-financing
:
US$ 98.269
Total Project Cost
:
US$ 112.260
4. GEF OPERATIONAL FOCAL POINT ENDORSEMENTS
Antigua and Barbuda
Diann Black-Layne, Ministry of Tourism and Environment
Endorsement received 28/01/02 and reconfirmed 2004
Bahamas
Donald Cooper, Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries
Endorsement received 17/01/02 and reconfirmed 2004
Barbados
Leonard Nurse, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Physical Development and Environment
Endorsement received 28/02/02 and reconfirmed 2004
Cuba
Jorge L. Fernández Chamero, Director, Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología y Medio Ambiente
Endorsement received 13/01/04
Dominica
Davis Letang, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and the Environment
Endorsement received 26/02/04
Dominican Republic
Frank Moya Pons, Secretario de Estado, Secretaria de Estado de Medio Ambiente y
Recursos Naturale,
Endorsement received 02/10/01 and Reconfirmed 2004
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Grenada
Lennox Andrews, Ministry of Finance
Endorsement received 26/2/2004
Haiti
Lionel Parisien, Ministere de l'Environnement
Endorsement received 28/9/01 reconfirmation pending
Jamaica
Leonie Barnaby, Ministry of Land and Environment
Endorsement received 14/01/02 and reconfirmed 2004
St. Kitts and Nevis
Hilary Hazel, Ministry of Finance, Development and Planning
Endorsement received 05/02/02 and reconfirmed 2004
St. Lucia
Martin Satney, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Physical Development, Environment and
Housing, Endorsement received 24/02/04
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Reynold Murray, Ministry of Health and the Environment
Endorsement received 26/02/04
Trinidad and Tobago
Anthony Bartholomew, Ministry of Public Utilities and the Environment
Endorsement received 06/02/02 and reconfirmed 2004
5. IMPLEMENTING AGENCY CONTACTS: Mr. Ahmed Djoghlaf, AED
Director UNEP Division of GEF Coordination
Nairobi, Kenya
Tel: 254-20-624166
Fax: 254-20-624041
ahmed.djoghlaf@unep.org
Mr. Leif Pedersen, Regional Co-ordinator
Biodiversity and International Waters
Presidente Masaryk No. 29 piso 10
Col. Chapultepec Morales
11570 Mexico, D.F.
Tel: (52) 5263-9815
Fax: (52) 5255-2524
leif.pedersen@undp.org
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LIST OF ACRONYMS
AOSIS
Alliance of Small Island States
BPOA
Barbados Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of SIDS
CARICOM
Caribbean Community of Nations
CAST
Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism
CBWMP
Caribbean Basin Water Management Programme
CEHI
Caribbean Environmental Health Institute
CHA
Caribbean Hotels Association
CIDA
Canadian International Development Agency
CCA
Caribbean Conservation Association
CEP
Caribbean Environment Programme
CPACC
Caribbean Planning for Adaptation to Climate Change
CREP
Caribbean Regional Environment Programme
CSME
CARICOM Single Market and Economy
CTO
Caribbean Tourism Organisation
GEF
Global Environment Facility
GIWA
Global International Waters Assessment
IDP
Integrated Development Plan/Planning
ISM
Island System Management
IWCAM
Integrated Watershed and Coastal Area Management
MACC
Mainstreaming Adaptation to Climate Change
NFP
National Focal Point
NIPC
National Inter-ministerial Policy Committee
NRCA
Natural Resources Conservation Authority of Jamaica
NRMU
Natural Resources Management Unit of the OECS
NTAG
National Technical Advisory Group
OAS
Organisation of American States
OECS
Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States
PCU
Project Coordination Unit
PDF
Project Development Facility of the GEF
POA
Programme of Action
RPC
Regional Project Coordinator
SIDS
Small Island Developing States
SLR
Sea Level Rise
UNDP
United Nations Development Programme
UNEP
United Nations Environment Programme
USAID
United States Agency for International Development
UWI
University of the West Indies
UWICED
University of the West Indies Centre for Environment and Development
WSSD
World Summit on Sustainable Development
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LIST OF ANNEXES & APPENDICES
APPENDIX 1: THE IWCAM DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS
REQUIRED ANNEXES
Annex A Incremental Cost Analysis
Annex B Logical Framework Analysis
Annex C STAP Roster Technical Review and Response
OPTIONAL ANNEXES
Annex D Root Cause Analysis
Annex E Public Involvement Plan Summary
Annex F Reference Documents
Annex G Implementation Arrangements and Project Management
Annex H Profile of Executing Agencies
Annex I
List of IWCAM-related, GEF supported or funded initiatives within the
Caribbean
Annex J: Endorsement Letter from NFPs and Co-Financing letters (separate file)
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BACKGROUND & CONTEXT
GLOBAL SIGNIFICANCE
1. The watersheds and coastal areas of the Caribbean contain some of the world's most diverse
and productive habitats and encompass extensive areas of complex and unique eco-systems. The
coastal areas include mangroves, coral reefs, sea grass beds and river deltas, which are an
important source of food production and support a variety of economic activities such as
fisheries, tourism and the related uses of recreation and transportation.
2. The Caribbean has extensive wetlands of global significance as attested to by a Ramsar
Mission to the Caribbean in September 2002, which noted the vulnerability of these wetlands,
and the urgent need for efforts toward their conservation and sustainable use, through the joint
commitment of national governments and the international community. Over 13 percent of the
world's coral reefs are found in the Caribbean region. Many Caribbean species are endemic only
to this region. Some 30% of these are now considered to be either destroyed, or at extreme risk
from anthropogenic threats1. Another 20% or more are expected to be lost from the Caribbean
over the next 10-30 years if significant action is not taken to manage and protect them over and
beyond existing activities. Mangroves are the most poorly supported (funding-wise) of all the
globally-significant habitat types throughout the entire Latin America and Caribbean region and
are also the least well-managed and are disappearing fast under development pressures. Seagrass
beds are poorly mapped and badly managed.
3. As all terrestrial areas in the 13 Caribbean small island developing states (SIDS see Figure
1) fall within a watershed, their protection and integrated management is critical to the protection
of terrestrial biodiversity. A recent survey of the world's biodiversity hotspots2 has ranked these
terrestrial areas as among the three highest priorities in any global strategy for biodiversity
conservation and sustainable management. As a result of their isolation, the Caribbean islands
have developed a high level of endemism amongst their flora and fauna. Scientific estimates
support evidence that up to 40 percent of the plant life in Caribbean forests is found nowhere else
on the planet, and the entire area is renowned as a migratory route for birds moving between
North and South America. Endemism and its resultant highly significant biodiversity is the key
to the importance of natural habitats in the terrestrial, watershed and coastal environs of these
Caribbean Islands, and is directly linked to human health and well-being through priority
ecosystem functions (such as clean water, agricultural capacity, availability of food, etc).
1 Wilkinson, C. 2000. The status of coral reefs of the world. Report of the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network.
2 Mittermeier, R.A., et al. Hotspots: Earths' Biologically Richest and Most Endangered Terrestrial Ecoregions.
1991, CEMEX and Conservation International. 430 pp. ISBN 968-6397-58-2.
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IWCAM Participating Country
IWCAM Participating Country
with a Demonstration Project
The Bahamas
Cuba
Dominican Republic
Haiti
Jamaica
Antigua
and Barbuda
St. Kitts and Nevis
Dominica
St. Lucia
St. Vincent and
the Grenadines
Barbados
N
Grenada
Trinidad
and Tobago
0
200
400
600 Kilometer s
Figure 1: Distribution of Participating SIDS within the Caribbean
Clearly this region is of critical importance to global biodiversity from the point-of-view of the
uniqueness of species and habitats. If this biodiversity is viewed in the context of the high degree
of threat, along with the recognised inadequate coverage of protected areas, and the desperate
need for more effective and sustainable resource planning and management, then the vital global
significance of this project becomes apparent. The Caribbean has already lost nearly 90% of its
original biological habitat (prior to human interference). The aforementioned survey2 notes that
"..some risk taking is justified; even if a top-priority project in one of these areas has some risk
of failure, it probably should be attempted. It implies that special attention should be taken on
strengthening local capacity as quickly as possible, but that outside technical assistance should
also be provided if local capacity is not adequate; we simply cannot afford to wait until local
capacity is fully developed... We simply are not likely to have a second chance in these areas if
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our investments over the next few years fail to produce results. Very little remains, and every
piece of natural habitat that has managed to survive is both especially fragile and tremendously
important in global terms."
MAJOR AREAS OF CONCERN
4. During the project preparation phase, supported by a GEF PDF-B grant, national reports
were produced (see Annex I) summarising the problems of integrated watershed and coastal area
management in each country. These were drawn together in a regional synthesis (Annex I) from
which the Root Cause Analysis contained in Annex D was derived. In accordance with the aims
and objectives of this project, it was found that the main problems transcend any differentiation
across the coastal-watershed interface and, in reality, effect these SIDS from the highest points of
their watersheds out into their coastal zone jurisdiction as delimited by their territorial waters.
The national reports identified the country's major concerns in relation to the integrity of natural
resource protection and management, economic stability, and sustainable development within the
Caribbean SIDS, to include inter alia:
Diminishing Freshwater Supplies
5. The Caribbean nations occupy a region of the world in which providing adequate supplies of
freshwater presents a substantial challenge to local governments. In many countries, the annual
per capita freshwater availability falls far below the 1,000 cubic meter commonly used to
measure scarcity.
6. However, this region has a poor track record of water resource management within the
watershed, and with respect to groundwater supplies. This lack of appropriate management is
affecting the sustainability of the water resource itself as well as the associated biodiversity in
the watershed and coastal zone, and is adding to land degradation within the Caribbean SIDS
7. The region is highly dependent on rainfall to feed surface intakes and replenish groundwater.
Water resources management is further complicated by the local geology, which is dominated
either by porous limestone, not useful for sustaining streams, or by dense volcanic rocks that
limit infiltration. Changes in the rainfall patterns may cause more severe and longer droughts,
limiting stream flow and reservoir storage or may increase flooding and inundation
8. The agricultural sector represents a significant economic sector in Caribbean SIDS and is
heavily dependent on freshwater supplies for irrigation purposes. Supplies of irrigation water are
often a principal controlling factor restricting agricultural expansion within the small island
states of the Caribbean. In Barbados, irrigation is the second highest water consumer, after
domestic use, amounting to 16.2 million m3 a year. This amount has been forecast to increase
15-20% over the next 10-15 years if export markets can be gained and less than half of that, if
only local markets are supplied, resulting in an average increase rate of 1% annually. St. Vincent
notes also that competitive banana markets and the demand for high-quality products are
increasing the need for irrigation. Tourism, which is critical to the economies of the Caribbean
SIDS, is another high consumer of freshwater for personal consumption and hygiene, laundry,
irrigation and even aesthetics (fountains and waterfalls).
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9. It is apparent that one of the most pressing concerns regarding freshwater resource
management in the region is that of demand exceeding supply. Demand for water resources is
increasing rapidly as a result of economic and demographic changes. Some countries such as
Dominica and Guyana still have more than adequate water resources, but find that their
infrastructure capacity is inadequate to provide the necessary services, and that efficient
distribution and application is crippled by leakage and wastage. Other nations simply lack the
necessary water resources. This problem is exacerbated by the structure or absence of water
tariffs and rates. Generally, water is not treated as an economic good and consequently water
rights, water markets and pricing are not used to improve management and, for the most part,
there is no incentive for consumers to use water efficiently.
10. This overall trend toward mismanagement of freshwater supplies must inevitably affect
downstream biological habitat conditions and biodiversity throughout the watershed. In contrast,
the development of good water resource management practices, in coordination with a more
integrated (cross-sectoral) approach to overall resource management, can only improve the
chances for long-term, sustainable resource protection and use, and reduce the harmful effects of
land degradation, along with the immediate and long-term threats to human welfare and health.
Degraded Freshwater and Coastal Water Quality
11. In the Caribbean SIDS, high population densities, combined with population growth,
urbanisation and increased development, particularly residential and tourist resort development,
has led to the contamination of underlying aquifers and surface water, and deterioration of
coastal water quality. Sediments from soil erosion and over-utilisation of chemicals for
agriculture and industrial use are generally considered the main causes for deterioration of water
quality and public health. In addition, sea level rise may cause saltwater intrusion in coastal
aquifers and may impair the water quality of shallow lenses, which are important sources for
public water supplies.
12. Wastewater treatment facilities are inadequate in many locations. For instance, in Saint
Lucia, only 13% of the population is connected to waste water treatment facilities. Jamaica, St.
Kitts and Nevis, and St. Lucia note many problems with solid-waste disposal, in particular
indiscriminate waste disposal and unlined landfills, which can allow hazardous leachate to enter
the groundwater. Many of these threats to human health are a direct result of inadequate
sanitation treatment. This is further compounded by insufficient drainage and results in standing
pools of contaminated water. During severe weather conditions (e.g., hurricanes, floods, heavy
rainfall) these pools present a major threat of sewage-related outbreaks of diseases. In St. Kitts
and Nevis, during these weather events, gastroenteritis becomes a serious threat to the
population. Jamaica also reports experiencing disease outbreaks related to unsanitary conditions
resulting from inadequate water supply for hygiene purposes. Throughout the region, improperly
constructed pit latrines result in seepage and eventually to groundwater contamination. Cuba
reports that its health problems related to water supply primarily affect the rural population. The
principal illnesses that have been observed and are being monitored are typhoid fever, dysentery,
Hepatitis A, parasites, and acute diarrhoea.
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13. The water quality at many recreational beaches throughout the Caribbean is of concern, both
in relation to the health of tourist visitors as well as to the welfare of related coastal biological
communities and habitats. Many of the tourist resorts and hotels are indifferent to the fact that
agricultural chemicals, sewage and other domestic wastes are introduced into the watershed and
find their way down to the tourist beaches and parks. As long as the coastal waters are clear and
blue then their clients are content. However, ear and throat infections are becoming more
frequent among tourists, and there is a general trend toward poor water quality and
eutrophication at a number of tourist beaches.
14. Inadequately treated sewage waste contributes to health-related problems, both through
contamination of drinking water supplies, and through the presence of pathogens in the
watershed and coastal water environment as a whole. It also represents a hazard with respect to
eutrophication causing coastal algal blooms, and changes to biological community structure
throughout the overall watershed-coastal zone continuum. The end effect can be stress and/or
destruction of sensitive ecosystems such as coral reefs with knock-on effects in other coastal
habitats and on other coastal species and biodiversity as a whole. Clearly the implications to
fisheries, both from the point-of-view of health problems and catch reduction, are a serious
human concern.
15. Manufacturing and processing plants such as breweries, paint and paper manufacture and
diesel-powered generating plants proliferate within coastal and watershed areas of all Caribbean
countries to take better advantage of water sources and transportation needs. The industrial sector
frequently discharges untreated effluent directly into rivers and/or stores wastes in unlined
holding ponds. Industrial pollution is a particularly pressing problem for the larger countries
including Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Guyana and the Dominican Republic, given their
comparatively high level of industrialization linked to the production of sugar, rum, oil refining,
petrochemicals, paint and metal finishing. Jamaica is also contending with the problem of the
"discharge of industrial effluent into sinkholes resulting in the rapid movement of waste towards
local aquifers and nearby springs." Agro-processing also produces effluents with a high
biological oxygen demand, which impact water resources and aquatic ecosystems. Cuba reports
that increased development has brought with it an increase in the amount of hazardous chemical
and biomedical waste. Over 1.2 million tons of industrial hazardous wastes are produced in
Cuba annually. Cuba is now encouraging the inclusion of methods to reduce hazardous waste
production in the design of new industrial plants and retrofits whether through source reduction
or recycling. Again, much of the untreated effluent and waste products not only contaminate the
watershed and ground water supplies, but also threaten downstream coastal areas and the natural,
biological diversity of habitats and species, which they support.
16. Solid and sewage wastes from households continue to be a problem. Throughout the region,
countries lack sufficient solid-waste-collection systems and wastewater-treatment systems. As a
result, many citizens inappropriately dispose of their waste in gullies and along riverbanks,
therefore polluting rivers, streams, and ultimately the coastal waters into which they drain.
17. The agricultural sector also contributes to pollution and contamination, as a result of
agrochemical run-off and leaching, direct agrochemical influx from aerial spraying and
indiscriminate and improper disposal of solid waste. There is also a trend toward using low-lying
5
wetlands for rice cultivation, which brings with it increased pesticide use. Another source of
agricultural pollution is waste from agricultural production.
Unsustainable Tourism
18. Opportunities for economic development in SIDS are often limited and the economic
dependence on international tourism and agricultural exports is unusually high. Tourism is
generally the most important source of external revenue, and the greatest single contributor to
Gross National Product.
19. As well as needing a reliable source of good quality food, and having to provide attractive
resorts and facilities, the tourism industry is heavily dependent on healthy watersheds and good
coastal water quality for its success. Freshwater demand per capita by tourists is many times that
of residents of island nations. Accordingly, without sufficient access to high-quality water
resources, the tourist industry cannot thrive, and would almost certainly go into recession or
collapse entirely. Furthermore, tourism's use of coastal and marine resources has been extensive
and continuous. The majority of the tourism development in the Caribbean is located within
coastal areas. Beaches and near-shore waters are the site of much of the tourism-based marine
recreational activities, such as scuba diving, snorkelling and water skiing. At the same time,
waste produced by the tourist industry can contaminate the very watersheds and coastal areas
they depend upon. Little consideration is given to maintaining this quality environment in order
to maintain the attraction to tourists, and thereby maintain the economic stability of the country
while protecting the natural resource. The Dominican Republic groups the principal impacts of
tourism on watersheds in four categories: (1) changes in natural drainage patterns due to
reductions in vegetation and surface absorption, (2) excessive use of water and other resources,
(3) pollution of watersheds, and (4) transformation of land and water habitats.
20. The tourism industry in particular, has a significant impact on freshwater resources, for a
variety of reasons. The high demand for freshwater contributes to over-extraction from aquifers
and the rapid depletion of surface resources. For example, Barbados estimates that, given
current plans, the demand for water for construction and irrigation of golf courses will increase
to five times the present demand in the near future. Similar stories exist within the other
Caribbean SIDS. This over-extraction of freshwater must inevitably have a detrimental effect on
watershed and coastal biological communities, many of which are dependent on a very precise
balance of water availability and salinity throughout the year. Also, when large hotels or golf
courses are developed, vegetation is cleared from the area, which can lead to flooding, soil
erosion, destruction of terrestrial habitats, and poor aquifer recharge.
Inappropriate Land Use
21. Land use also affects the health of freshwater ecosystems, watersheds and coastal areas in
SIDS. Poor land use planning and soil management in watersheds reduce freshwater capturing
capacity and affect coastal water quality and aquatic biodiversity. There is a direct relationship
between the use of land for domestic, commercial, industrial or agricultural purposes, the
generation of waste by these uses, and the impact on the quality of both surface and groundwater
resources. In most countries, unsustainable land-clearing practices, inefficient irrigation, and the
6
use of agro-chemicals is a source of significant damage. Within the domestic sector, land
clearance and construction on previously uninhabited land is producing sedimentation,
deforestation, and pollution, on top of the obvious problem of biological habitat degradation and
destruction. These effects are being felt throughout the watershed-coastal area continuum.
22. Land use is a potential source of conflict since it involves issues of land tenure, traditional
use, and economic livelihood. Many farmers are not using sustainable farming techniques. This
may be due to insecurity regarding land tenure, limited economic resources, or lack of
knowledge of different farming techniques. The Dominican Republic has noted an increase in the
use of agro-chemicals over the last decade because of reduced soil fertility and increased
resistance to pests and diseases. This increased use of agro-chemicals threatens the biological
integrity and sustainability of both watershed and coastal areas. Contributing additionally is a
trend toward the use of low-lying wetlands for rice cultivation, which brings with it increased
pesticide use. St. Vincent and the Grenadines reports that poorer farmers are increasingly
deforesting protected areas or planting crops on marginal lands because they have been driven
off farmland that they traditionally cultivated.
23. Inappropriate land use exacerbates the impact of floods and drought. Deforestation causes a
reduction in water retention and potential landslides, clogging of recharge and drainage wells,
and increased soil erosion. Droughts also occur periodically throughout the region. Antigua and
Barbuda noted that animal grazing on sparse vegetation during droughts exposes topsoil, which,
during subsequent periods of high precipitation, is prone to severe erosion. Siltation is so
significant that often water for domestic use is heavily laden with sediments, despite having
passed through the treatment processes. Coastal erosion can clearly be exacerbated by
inappropriate coastal development, including removal of mangroves, destruction of seagrass beds
and coral reefs, and by sand mining, which exposes the coastline and hinterland to the
destructive forces of waves energy and storm surges. Sand mining is a particular problem
especially on Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, due to the active construction
industry. Several governments have introduced policies to encourage the importation of sand for
construction and legislation has been drafted to discourage sand mining. However enforcement
of such legislation has been inadequate.
Climate Change
24. Environmental assessment and monitoring of the actual and potential impact of climate
change on coastal areas and watersheds is emerging as major imperative for all of the countries
in the Caribbean region. All Caribbean countries have signed the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC). Through the GEF-financed project entitled
Caribbean Planning for Adaptation to Climate Change (CPACC) and its successor project
Mainstreaming Adaptation to Climate Change (MACC), countries are examining the possible
scenarios and how to deal with them. The possible effects of climate change on coastal water
levels and temperatures are a threat to the fragile coral-reef ecosystems. The coastal region is
perhaps the most economically-valuable area on most islands and even small changes could
produce permanent environmental damage, and severely affect the islands' economies. Changes
in climatic conditions, which result in an increase or reduction in precipitation, will adversely
affect watershed and watershed-coastal interface characteristics with respect to their biological
7
status quo. Changes in precipitation patterns are also frequently responsible for increased land
degradation. Any involvement in assessment and monitoring of climate change parameters
through this current project would clearly need to be linked to, and subordinate to, the existing
CPACC project and the MACC project. Furthermore, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) is
establishing its Regional Climate Change Centre in Belize. The Centre will implement projects
designed to prepare for and to reduce the harmful effects of climate change and sea level rise.
The Centre will also seek ways in which the Caribbean can benefit from any opportunities that
may result from climate change and position the region to maximize benefits from new and
additional resources arising from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCC). The IWCAM project will establish close links to this Centre.
Natural Disasters
25. Natural hazards are also a serious issue for a region that is routinely hit with hurricanes,
earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions. These events often bring about flooding and landslides due
to anthropogenic activities such as deforestation and construction in vulnerable areas and can
have devastating impacts on watershed and coastal ecosystems. Owing to the frequency of
hazards, and the extensive damage, which they cause, many countries focused their efforts on
post-disaster response rather than on mitigation. Not all countries have early-warning systems in
operation, and/or disaster management plans.
26. In summary, it is clear that the coastal and watershed environments of the Caribbean SIDS
cannot be considered or managed separately or in isolation. There is a strong causal linkage
between these two areas, which strongly advises their consideration under an integrated
management approach.
27. As presented above, the principal threats to the sustainable use of watersheds and coastal
areas in SIDS (and indeed watersheds and coastal areas almost everywhere) include pollution,
poor land-use leading to habitat degradation, unsustainable tourism, excessive and inefficient use
of freshwater supplies, climate change, natural disasters, and the competing interests of different
stakeholder groups. These threats are not mutually exclusive. As watersheds and coastal
ecosystems demand an integrated and holistic approach to their management, the threats must
also be viewed in a similar manner. For example, the impacts of the deforestation of a watershed
can range from erosion to reduced water retention of the soil.
28. The increasing demands placed on freshwater supplies and other natural resources are likely
to cause increasing conflicts over allocation and use in the foreseeable future. Clearly, there is a
need to integrate freshwater and coastal waters management through multi-sectoral planning and
management of island ecosystems.
29. The primary impacts on the coastal and watershed environment which are causing the above-
mentioned areas of concern (bearing in mind that this project cannot directly address climate
change issues or natural hazards) have been summarised as:
· AQUIFER DEGRADATION
· REDUCTION IN SURFACE WATER QUALITY AND AVAILABILITY
8
· LOSS OF WATERSHED AND COASTAL BIODIVERSITY
· LAND DEGRADATION AND COASTAL EROSION
ROOT CAUSES OF ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS, AND RELATED BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE
IWCAM
30. Having identified the major national concerns with respect to natural resource integrity and
sustainability within the SIDS, the national reports then identify the following causal linkages
between the noticeable impacts and the actual root causes and barriers to IWCAM. It is these
root causes that need to be addressed in order to mitigate the threats and impacts and develop a
regional environment of effective integrated coastal and watershed management (Annex D
provides a full Root Cause Analysis Table). It is notable that all of the following Root Causes
can be categorised under either A. Legislative and policy shortfalls, B. Lack of effective
management and infrastructure, and C. Inadequate knowledge, information or training in
IWCAM-related issues
Aquifer Degradation
This has resulted mainly from chemical contamination and salt-water intrusion.
Primary Causes include:
· Improper wastewater treatment (Domestic and industrial)
· Overuse of agricultural chemicals
· Demand for water resources exceeding supply
· Inadequate knowledge of aquifer and groundwater dynamics and re-charging
Root Causes include:
A. Inadequate or inappropriate laws, policies & regulations
Poor-enforcement of existing legislation & regulations
Lack of incentives for conservation and management (especially water resources)
Inadequate or non-existent justification for policy and legislation improvements
B. A fragmented and sectoral approach to environmental management coupled with limited
communication and collaboration between various sectors
Weak institutional arrangements, limited human resource availability and capacity
Inadequate development planning
C. Non-existent, inadequate, or unreliable data
Limited information on (and investment in) alternative or best practices
Limited understanding of the environmental impacts and consequent economic losses
Lack of public awareness and education
9
Reduction in Surface Water Quality and Availability
This is a mainly a result of contamination and sedimentation.
Primary Causes include:
· Overuse of agricultural chemicals
· Demand for water resource exceeds supply
· Deforestation
· Overgrazing
· Construction
Root Causes include:
A. Lack of effective policies (e.g. reforestation and water conservation)
Fiscal and regulatory systems that encourage unsustainable land practices and
uncontrolled water exploitation
B. Inadequate land and resource management
Poor land-use planning and water resource management
C. Limited knowledge of alternative practices
Loss of Watershed and Coastal Biodiversity
Primarily as result of land-use conversion, changes in catchment and stream flow, loss of habitat,
and over-exploitation of resources coupled with limited and ineffective protection of sensitive
areas.
Primary Causes include:
· Inappropriate and unsustainable development
· Unsustainable exploitation of resources
· Inappropriate or inadequate technology
· Population growth and demand on resources
· Changes in land use
Root Causes include:
A. Inadequate legislation, regulation & control leading to over-exploitation of coastal and
watershed resources
Political support in favour of unsustainable resource exploitation for short-term economic
growth
B. Inappropriate or absent development planning and land-use management
Inappropriate land tenure and ownership issues resulting in lack of
accountability/responsibility
Increasing demand for resources coupled with poor and unsustainable management and
conservation practices
Lack of stakeholder management, ownership and responsibility
10
C. Use of inappropriate technology leading to destruction of non-target species, non cost-
effective use of the resource, destruction of habitat, and pollution of the environment
Land Degradation and Coastal Erosion
As a result of loss of vegetative cover and soil erosion, coupled with construction and mining
Primary Causes include:
· Deforestation
· Overgrazing
· Inappropriate land-use practices
· Demand for building materials (versus limited supply)
· Inappropriate construction practices
Root Causes include:
A. Inadequate or non-existent regulations and laws
Land tenure issues (no responsibility for land ownership)
B. Poor land-use planning
Inadequate development control
C. No understanding of the benefits of stakeholder participation
Lack of knowledge about the participatory process
31. The overall conclusion arising from the national reviews of threats and root causes to
effective watershed and coastal management is that the existing practices are generally out-of-
date and uncoordinated, that institutional arrangements and policy are in urgent need of reform,
and that effective and sustainable management can only occur in the presence of evolving
stakeholder support and participation. The evidence suggests that, with very few exceptions
(notably Barbados, Cuba and Jamaica) Caribbean countries suffer from:
· A multiplicity of institutions and jurisdictions that deal with various aspects of resource
management, often developing and implementing policies and programmes in isolation from
one another;
· A multiplicity of laws, each dealing separately (and through different sectoral
responsibilities) with various aspects of resource management, thus encouraging a
compartmentalised and isolated approach to environmental management;
· An absence of credible arrangements for involvement of civil society in sustainable
development initiatives; and, the lack of understanding and awareness of the principles of
sustainable development and the inseparable linkages between environment, social and
economic issues.
· An absence of measurable indications of the environmental and socio-economic trends in the
coastal and watershed environment. This is a severe constraint to the development of
effective and targeted policy and legislation in support of IWCAM. It also creates an
environment whereby major resource users and polluters are unaccountable and are not
required to invest back into the management of those resources, which they exploit or
threaten.
11
32. In addition, there is often ample awareness within the responsible and accountable sectors
regarding very specific threats to coastal and watershed management (e.g. pollution and
contamination of coastal areas and aquifers from domestic wastewater and sewage). However,
the problem lies in the fact that mitigation and effective management are frequently constrained
by the absence of cost-effective and applicable solutions, which would be realistic to the SIDS
situation (politically and economically).
INSTITUTIONAL. LEGAL, POLICY AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC LANDSCAPE
33. The National Reports assembled during the PDF phase were also required to identify the
institutional, legal, policy and socio-economic status of each country in relation to coastal and
watershed management.
Institutional
34. Some progress has been and is being made within the Caribbean at the national and regional
level to address the need for improved institutional arrangements for natural resource
management linked to long-term sustainable development. Since 1990, the Secretariat of the
Convention for the Protection and Development of the Marine Environment of the Wider
Caribbean Region (Cartagena Convention), through the Caribbean Environment Programme
(CEP) and supported by the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA), has carried out
several pilot studies in the coastal areas of large countries, as well as small island states. These
have formed the basis for guidelines on coastal area management published by the Secretariat in
1995. CEP also actively maintains a project on management of marine protected areas, which has
brought training and guidance to the countries of the Wider Caribbean and has worked with the
U.S. Agency for International Development on a sustainable tourism initiative for the Wider
Caribbean with a focus on coastal area and domestic wastewater management. Additionally,
CEP's work with the Inter-American Development Bank has increased the capacity of several
CEP countries (including some under this project proposal) to improve environmental
information systems management for coastal and marine areas.
35. The work programme and specific projects of the Caribbean Environmental Health Institute
(CEHI) have also attempted to address some of the problems, but as separate programme areas.
Since its establishment in 1989 by governments of the Caribbean Community, CEHI has worked
on improving the capacity of countries in the areas of water quality (coastal, recreational and
potable) and water resources management, solid waste management (including hazardous waste)
and excreta and liquid waste. This is being funded by a 10-year project funded by the German
Technological Agency (GTZ) with the goal of environmental health improvement. Work under
this GTZ-funded Project has spanned policy and legislative reform, the development of standards
and guidelines, technical interventions, institutional capacity building, public awareness and
education in environmental management in Member States. The project has also focused on
capacity building for CEHI, specifically its laboratory capabilities for pesticides and heavy
metals. Key stakeholders such as national Water Authorities, Solid Waste Authorities, Ministries
of Health and Environment, as well as Civil Society (such as NGOs and CBOs) are all direct
beneficiaries of the Project. This Project has laid a significant foundation for focused actions
under IWCAM and points to the need for an integrated, cross-sectoral, participatory management
12
approach. Other initiatives have focused on the strengthening of monitoring of coastal resources
such as coral reefs, seagrass beds and beaches; pesticides residue monitoring in agriculture
specifically in the banana industry in the OECS countries; point and non-point sources of
pollution, specifically in the watersheds of four countries, with a view to determining best
management practices (BMPs). The tourism/environment linkage among Caribbean countries is
another platform, which addresses specific problems such as solid waste generation, water
quality and water conservation and re-use. CEHI and the CEP have worked together in the area
of sustainable tourism and have also collaborated on the development of effluent guidelines.
Environmental management initiatives are heavily underpinned by public awareness and training
activities.
36. In an attempt to provide a conceptual and operational framework for the management of
coastal and marine areas in island settings, the OECS Natural Resource Management Unit
(NRMU) has introduced the concept of Island Systems Management (ISM). ISM is based on the
recognition of the interactions and interdependence of various systems on the island. ISM should
be seen as an adaptive management strategy which addresses issues of resource use conflicts and
which provides the necessary policy orientation to control the impacts of human intervention on
the environment. For ISM to be effective, it must be implemented under a formal institutional
and legal framework, coordinating the initiatives of all public and private sectors whilst ensuring
that common goals are attained.
Legal and Policy
37. The Cartagena Convention provides the only regional legal framework for environmental
protection in the Caribbean. In addition to the Cartagena Convention, adopted in 1983, there are
three protocols to the Convention:
· The Protocol Concerning Cooperation in Combating Oil Spills (adopted in 1983)
· The Protocol Concerning Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife (SPAW) to the
Cartagena Convention (adopted in 1990)
· The Protocol Concerning Pollution from Land-Based Sources and Activities (LBS)
(adopted in 1999).
38. The Caribbean Environment Programme (CEP) was set up in the region as part of the UNEP
Regional Seas Programme. CEP is facilitated by the Caribbean Regional Coordinating Unit
(CAR/RCU) in Jamaica, which serves as the Secretariat to CEP. The objectives of the Secretariat
are to provide assistance to all countries in the region, strengthen national and sub-regional
institutions, coordinate international assistance, and stimulate technical cooperation among
countries. CAR/RCU also serves as the Secretariat to the Cartagena Convention and its
Protocols.
39. The legal structure of the Cartagena Convention is such that it covers the various aspects of
marine pollution for which the Contracting Parties must adopt measures. Thus the Convention
requires the adoption of measures aimed at preventing, reducing and controlling pollution in the
following areas:
13
· Pollution from ships
· Pollution caused by dumping
· Pollution for sea-bed activities
· Airborne pollution
· Pollution from land-based sources and activities
In addition, the Parties are required to take appropriate measures to protect and preserve
rare or fragile ecosystems, as well as the habitat of depleted, threatened or endangered
species, and to develop technical and other guidelines for the planning and environmental
impact assessments of important development practices in order to prevent or reduce
harmful impacts on the area of application. The Cartagena Convention is not the only
Multilateral Environmental Agreement applicable in the region. However, its regional
area of application makes it an important complement to other agreements, and to this
current proposal. Many of the general requirements of the Convention will indeed be
strengthened and implemented through the activities of this GEF proposal. Other
applicable MEAs within the region include:
· The Cartagena Convention and Protocols
· Convention on Biological Diversity
· The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands
· The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
· United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC)
· Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes
and their Disposal
· St. George's Declaration of Principles for Environmental Sustainability in the OECS
40. The CEP programme is working closely with countries in the region to address many of the
issues identified within the Cartagena Convention and its Protocols. One of CEP's main sub-
programmes is the Assessment and Management of Environmental Pollution (AMEP)
programme. This provides regional coordination for the Land-Based Sources Protocol. AMEP
supports the activities required for the establishment of necessary measures to prevent, reduce
and control marine pollution and to assist in the development of integrated environmental
planning and management of coastal and marine areas. This programme is responsible for the
regional management and coordination of global agreements such as the Global Programme of
Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-Based Activities (GPA),
Agenda 21, and the Basel Convention.
41. Not all countries participating in the project are yet party to the Convention (though the
majority are) and ratifications to the SPAW and LBS protocols (the two most relevant to this
project) are still in progress. Despite the presence and ratification of these regional laws,
however, implementation is variable and can fluctuate with the availability of national resources.
As a result, national laws have, for the most part, not caught up with these accepted regional
treaties nor have the national laws and regulations embraced a more holistic and targeted
approach such as that promoted in the Cartagena Convention and its protocols. The LBS
Protocol, for example, promotes integrated management of watershed and coastal areas and
14
contains groundbreaking regionally-adopted effluent limitations for domestic wastewater, while
providing a framework for limitations on other regionally significant industrial sources. Table 1
list the major IWCAM-related Conventions and Protocols applicable to the participating
countries along with their status regarding signature and ratification.
TABLE 1:
STATUS OF ADHERENCE TO CONVENTIONS AND PROTOCOLS
COUNTRY
Antigua Bahamas Barbados Cuba Dominica Dominican Grenada Haiti Jamaica St.
St. St. Vincent Trinidad
&
Republic
Kitts Lucia
&
&
Barbuda
&
Grenadines Tobago
Nevis
TREATY
Cartagena Convention
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
Oil Spill Protocol R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
SPAW Protocol
S
R
R
R
S
R
R
R
LBS Protocol
S
CMS Convention
MARPOL Convention
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
CBD Convention
CP
CP
CP
CP
CP CP CP
CP
CP
CP
CP
CP CP
UNCLOS Convention
CP
CP
CP
CP
CP S CP
CP
CP
CP
CP
CP CP
CNWH Convention
S
CP
CP
CP
STC Convention
CITES Convention
CP
CP
CP
CP
CP CP CP
CP
CP
CP
CP CP
Basel Convention
CP
CP
CP
CP
CP
S
CP CP
CP
S = Signatory to Convention or Protocol
R = Ratified Convention or Protocol
CP = Contracting Party to Convention
42. There is a notable absence of appropriate national water quality standards and guidelines
with respect to the use of coastal waters for recreational purposes, propagation and harvesting of
marine life, protection of marine ecosystems and assimilation of waste. This deficiency means
that Caribbean Governments have no basis for determining: (a) the physical, chemical and
biological parameters that must be met for the intended uses; (b) the suitability of coastal waters
for the intended uses; and (c) the effectiveness of controls on land-based sources of marine
pollution. Further, national effluent limitations (consistent with regional law) and monitoring
guidelines/procedures are necessary to establish individual source-specific controls on land-
based, point sources of coastal pollution. Table 2 identifies the country deficiencies and needs
with respect to legislative and policy requirements.
15
v
is
Legislations and
i
Policies
ts/Ne
Cuba
Hait
Antigua
Bahamas
Barbados
Dominica
Jamaica
Dominican
Republic
Grenada
St. Lucia
St.Vincent
Trinidad
St.Kit
Total States
Absent
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 10
Inadequate
and/or
outdated
Fragmented
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 10
among sectors
Lack of Clear
1 1 1 1 1 6
Jurisdiction
Enforcement 1 1 1 1 1 1 7
Deficiencies
National
1 1 1 1 1 1 7
administration
of multilateral
agreements
Harmonisation 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 10
among sectors
Framework for 1 1 1 1 1 1 6
consultations
in formulation
Institutional
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 10
capacity
building
Revision of all
1 1 1 1 1 6
existing
pertinent
Needs
legislation
Enhance
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 7
capacity of
enforcement
agencies
Regional
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 8
model policy
for IWCAM
Land use
1 1 1 1 1 5
policy
43. CEP, through its sub-programmes and activities, has attempted to assist the countries in
addressing relevant issues noted above, which come under the mandate of the Cartagena
16
Convention, and which relate to the current proposal. Such assistance includes projects
addressing:
· Sewage Treatment Needs Assessments
· Strengthening Marine Protected Areas in the Wider Caribbean
· Reducing Pesticide Run-Off to the Caribbean Sea
· Demonstrations of Innovative Approaches to the Rehabilitation of Heavily Contaminated
Bays in the Wider Caribbean
· International Coral Reef Action Network (ICRAN)
44. Furthermore, CEP, through the AMEP Programme, is committed to assisting the countries of
the region in the development of guidelines regarding the application of regulations and
economic steering instruments in the decision-making process toward the establishment and
enforcement of measures necessary to prevent, reduce and control marine pollution and to
provide them with relevant information (through workshops and coordination of databases).
However, there is now a clear need for targeted assistance to institutional, legislative and policy
strengthening and evolution and a very urgent requirement to develop best practices and lessons,
through demonstrations, to support the overall concept of integrated planning and management
within the national watersheds and coastal zones of the Caribbean SIDS.
45. To facilitate this assistance and the exchange of experience and information, the Caribbean
Environment Programme is developing the Caribbean Node of the Global Programme of Action
Clearinghouse Mechanism (GPA/CHM). The GPA/CHM is a data directory, with components
organized by source-category, cross-referenced to economic sectors, containing information on
current sources of information, practical experience and technical expertise. This tool is expected
to become instrumental to the implementation of the LBS Protocol.
46. Of critical concern in the region are the issues of freshwater supply and demand, and the
absence of effective, implemented policy towards water resource management. This has various
`knock-on' effects within watersheds and coastal areas. Due to economic and demographic
changes, demand for water resources within the region is increasing rapidly, and in some SIDS is
exceeding supply. Exacerbating this issue is the poor structure or absence of water tariffs and
rates. Generally, water is not treated as an economic good and consequently water rights, water
markets and pricing are not used to improve management. For the most part, there is no
incentive for consumers to use water efficiently. For example, in Barbados all metered
customers must pay a minimum charge. Accordingly, customers within this category end up
paying for water they may not have used. Fixed-rate (un-metered) customers also have no
incentive to conserve because they pay the same amount, regardless of the volume of water used.
Additionally, many countries have noted that the water charges generally do not cover the capital
and maintenance costs of the necessary infrastructure. Essentially, the governments subsidise
water use. This, in turn, creates unsustainable market conditions to the detriment to the
environment.
47. Land use affects the health of freshwater ecosystems, watersheds and coastal areas in the
region. As the proposed Land Policy document of Jamaica points out, there is a "direct
relationship between the use of land for domestic, commercial, industrial or agricultural
17
purposes, the generation of waste by these uses, and the impact on the quality of both surface and
groundwater resources." In most countries, unsustainable land-clearing practices, inefficient
irrigation, and the use of agro-chemicals is a source of significant damage. Within the domestic
sector, land clearing and construction on previously uninhabited land is producing sedimentation,
deforestation, and pollution, on top of the obvious problem of biological habitat degradation and
destruction. Furthermore, land use is a potentially conflictive issue since it involves issues of
land tenure, traditional use, and economic livelihood. Many farmers are not using sustainable
farming techniques. This may be due to insecurity regarding land tenure, limited economic
resources, or lack of knowledge of different farming techniques. Overall, there is a need within
the region to produce coherent and pragmatic guidelines for land-use planning policies, that are
consistent with development plans and ecosystem management plans, for adoption at the national
level.
48. The lack of an integrated environmental management approach is often compounded by
institutional fragmentation, inadequate policies, lack of funding, and institutional constraints.
Policies and laws cannot exist in isolation of social, economic and environmental realities and
imperatives. Ideally, the policies and laws that emerge to support IWCAM should derive from
the elaboration of national sustainable development plans, setting out national development goals
and objectives, including the relative contribution which key environmental assets will be
expected to make to the attainment of such goals and objectives. Policies and laws need to be
dynamic instruments and therefore continuous environmental assessment is required to keep
these laws and policies, relevant, sound and effective.
The lack of appropriate and enacted policy and legislation addressing threats represents a major
barrier to successful IWCAM.
Human Resources
49. Apart from the restricted financial resources available in many small island states to address
the problems of freshwater and coastal area management, the small size of populations generally
results in manpower limitations in terms of qualified experts available to manage resources on a
sustainable basis. Regional approaches that strengthen the sharing of experience and expertise
are therefore of critical importance.
50. Water utilities often lack adequate staffing levels with sufficient technical and financial
management skills. This leads to poor management of supply and demand in the face of water
shortages, and inadequate information gathering and analysis skills. Inadequate pricing and tariff
policies and high levels of unaccounted-for-water increase the problem. Inappropriate water
usage (potable water going to irrigation needs) along with leakages in the distribution systems
account for much of the loss. All the islands have established some preserves to protect valuable
habitat associated with ground and surface water supplies and well-fields, but the authorities lack
the necessary manpower and funding to enforce the rules or to monitor the success of
management approaches.
51. Significant progress has been made in the area of education and training over the past decade
and the Caribbean region supports a number of institutions dedicated to education and training in
18
resource management, including the UWI Centre for Environment and Development, and the
Sustainable Development Unit of the UWI, based in Jamaica. Human resource development has,
however, been hampered by the following issues and problems:
· The absence of a mechanism for technical cooperation among developing countries at the
regional level;
· The dearth of trained personnel in critical areas, such as water resources management;
environmental impact assessment; community-based resource management; marine law;
physical planning policy analysis; remote sensing; and climatology and hydrology;
· The seeming inappropriateness of the curricula of national and regional educational
institutions based on these deficiencies; and,
· The absence of policies, which aim to retain, within the wider Caribbean, expertise in various
aspects of resource management and sustainable development.
Stakeholder Participation
52. Throughout the region there are reports of increased stakeholder participation in the decision-
making process as well as increased awareness and education programmes for coastal area and
watershed management. Government agencies are making a point to reach out to non-
governmental organizations and community-based organizations through activities which other
stakeholders; the establishment of local area management authorities; the involvement of
stakeholders in monitoring, management, and conservation activities; media campaigns; public
consultations; and training on sustainable tourism. However, this is a fairly recent development
and, notwithstanding these laudable activities, many stakeholders in the participating countries
still feel that there is insufficient public involvement in the decision making process. Although
policies are moving slowly but surely toward more stakeholder participation in the management
process, often there is an absence of working examples or effective case studies with which to
guide policy makers and administrators.
Financial and Socio-economic
53. Most Caribbean Governments are finding it increasingly difficult to reconcile the need for
economic growth with rapidly expanding populations, and with the need to raise living standards
for a large and growing number of the poor. Raising the consumption levels of both private and
public goods and services requires large amounts of foreign exchange through foreign direct
investment and increases in productivity by export-oriented industries. The resources needed by
Governments for public investments and the regular provision of goods and services can only be
made available by expanding national income. Against this background, Caribbean Governments
are seeking to attain and maintain at least a 6% annual rate of economic growth to underpin the
implementation of their sustainable human development programmes. Attempts at doing so
continue to be challenged by a wide range of internal problems and externalities. Generally,
many of the internal problems spring from the small size of the countries. These include: the
narrow resource base; excessive dependence on international trade and hence vulnerability to
global trends and market changes; overuse and premature depletion of resources; the restricted
and threatened nature of freshwater resources; unreliable and restricted access to sustainable and
stable power sources; costly administration and infrastructure, including transportation and
19
communication; limited institutional capacities; small domestic markets which are too small to
provide significant economies of scale, while their limited export volumes, often from remote
locations, lead to high freight costs and reduced competitiveness.
54. An expanding range of externalities has dogged attempts at stimulating and sustaining
reasonable rates of economic growth. Indigenous firms are often under-capitalised and
constrained by obsolete technology and are therefore unable to meet the increasingly stringent
importation standards set by the developed countries. Many countries are yet to recover from the
spate of NAFTA-related factory closures that occurred in the early 1990s. Further, while WTO-
led, trade liberalisation policies are promising a much deeper integration of Caribbean economies
into the global economy, they are also causing a shift in production to areas in which the
Caribbean countries have little or no comparative advantage. This means that as markets become
the primary mechanism for resource allocation, economic production will increasingly rely on
the exploitation of the region's natural resources, which in turn in likely to increase pressure on
the environment. At the same time, moderate to low growth and a low savings rate are also
limiting the flow and size of funding required for the finance of environmentally sound
development.
55. Another important financial mechanism requirement emerging from work under the PDF was
the need to recognise the transfer of benefits, which has implications in both the socio-economic
as well as stakeholder spectrum. There was a consensus that the main productive sectors do not
meaningfully contribute to environmental maintenance and waste management costs, in
proportion to their reliance on the natural resource base. At the same time, the general public
and those representing community-based organisations, especially in the upper reaches of
watersheds in economically depressed rural areas (whose practices are critical to the
management of watersheds and downstream areas) are rarely the recipients of the benefits of
integrated watershed management and healthy coastal waters.
56. The combination of these particular environmental, social and economic characteristics
makes it imperative that issues of freshwater resources management and related coastal water
quality and biodiversity are addressed in an integrated manner, and that sectoral policies and
activities are modified to sustain and protect both freshwater supplies and coastal and marine
aquatic resources.
57. Integrated Coastal Management (ICM) is a management framework, which has proven to be
effective at enhancing the sustainable development of coastal resources and the marine
environment at the local government level. ICM provides local government units with a
mechanism and process to harmonize both the economic development and environmental
management of marine and coastal resources. Watershed management has been developed and
tested as a valuable mechanism in many countries that incorporates cross-sectoral linkages and
coordination along with stakeholder involvement and community management approaches. In
the small island situation there is a need to integrate these two approaches into an overall
Watershed and Coastal Area Management strategy. Small islands cannot effectively separate
these two areas as almost every activity within the watershed has an effect or impact in the
coastal area, and frequently vice versa. The concept of Integrated Watershed and Coastal Area
Management is not entirely a new one but it is relatively untested as yet and is very much in its
20
infancy. There are few regionally successful examples of its application and sustainability. The
current project aims to gather what lessons and best practices already exist and to substantially
enhance these through on-the-ground demonstrations of active IWCAM approaches and
techniques in order to develop transferable and replicable models and guidelines relevant to all
SIDS.
RATIONALE & OBJECTIVES
58. The overall objective of the proposed project will be to assist the 13 participating Small
Island developing states of the Caribbean to improve their watershed and coastal zone
management practices in support of sustainable development. The project will set out to
strengthen institutional capacity at the national and regional level; provide assistance to countries
in understanding the linkages between, and the requirement for integrating management of
watershed and coastal zone environmental problems; and will meet national priorities within the
regional context. The appropriate nature of this approach through GEF funding is discussed in
the section below entitled GEF Eligibility.
59. The World Summit on Sustainable Development (Johannesburg 2002) identified the special
needs of SIDS within its Johannesburg Plan of Implementation. Section VII of this PoI addressed
the issue of sustainable development of small-island developing states. The PoI recommended
actions at all levels to:
· Accelerate national and regional implementation of the Barbados PoA, with adequate
financial resources, including through the GEF focal areas, transfer of environmentally
sound technologies and assistance for capacity-building from the international
community.
· Assist small island developing states, including through the elaboration of specific
initiatives, in delimiting and managing in a sustainable manner their coastal areas and
exclusive economic Zones....
· Provide support, including for capacity-building, for the development and further
implementation of (i) Small island developing States-specific components within
programmes of work on marine and coastal biological diversity; (ii) Freshwater
programmes for small island developing States, including through the Global
Environmental Facility focal areas
· Effectively reduce, prevent and control waste and pollution and their health related
impacts by undertaking initiatives by 2004 aimed at implementing the Global programme
of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-Based activities in
small island developing States
· Support the finalisation and subsequent early operationalisation of economic, social and
environmental vulnerability indices and related indicators as tools for the achievement of
the sustainable development of small island developing States
· Provide support to small island developing States to develop capacity and strengthen
efforts to reduce and manage waste and pollution and building capacity for maintaining
and managing systems to deliver water and sanitation services in both rural and urban
areas.
21
60. The SIDS Barbados Conference and the resultant programme of action (SIDS/POA)
highlighted the need to safeguard watershed areas and other sources of groundwater to address
the problem of limited quantity of freshwater availability on small islands and to protect
biodiversity. The SIDS/POA also highlighted the need to strengthen the development of
integrated coastal zone management plans and strategies for coastal watersheds.
61. A10-year Review of the Barbados Programme of Action for SIDS (BPoA +10) is due to take
place in 2004. As a lead up to this process, an Inter-Regional Preparatory Meeting was held in
Nassau, The Bahamas from 26-30 January, 2004. The meeting adopted both the Nassau
Declaration and the AOSIS Strategy Paper in preparation for the Mauritius Meeting on Small
Island States in August 2004. Some of the primary concerns and needs of the SIDS arising from
this preparatory meeting, and which relate directly to the Caribbean IWCAM project, are
highlighted below:
A. Management of Wastes:
· Insufficient progress in planning and implementing waste management policies;
· The international community should provide support to SIDS for the development,
transfer and implementation of appropriate technologies;
· The international community should assist SIDS in: developing waste management
systems and institutions; establishing national environmental trust funds; and promoting
recycling and using waste as a resource;
· The quantity of waste disposed of in the sea should be reduced through regional
cooperation;
· SIDS, with UNEP's support, should implement the Global Programme of Action for the
Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities;
B. Coastal and Marine Resources:
· The establishment of a financial mechanism to assist SIDS in their implementation of
UNCLOS;
· SIDS, with the help of other States and using regional mechanisms, to adopt integrated
management tools;
· relevant regional and international development partners to support SIDS in the
development and implementation of regional initiatives.
C. Freshwater Resources:
· Provide assistance for capacity building for the development and further implementation
of freshwater and sanitation programmes and the promotion of integrated water
resources management.
· International, regional and private sector financial institutions to provide assistance in
meeting the Millennium Declaration target of halving the proportion of people without
sustainable access to safe drinking water by 2015;
· The WMO, supported by the international community, to continue to implement actions
to strengthen national capacity.
D. Land Resources:
22
· Strengthening land tenure and management systems;
· Move from primary to tertiary agricultural production;
· Present funding proposals under the Convention to Combat Desertification and the
Convention on Biological Diversity through the GEF, and request the GEF to facilitate
SIDS' access to GEF financial and technical resources for addressing land degradation.
· practical support from the UN system to enhance efficient and sustainable agricultural
production and ensure food security, and recommend the prioritisation by SIDS ministers
of agriculture of actions for enhanced contribution of agriculture, forestry and fisheries to
SIDS' sustainable development policies;
· facilitate legislation implementing sustainable logging and replanting, increase
stakeholder participation regarding forest resources, safeguard rights of resources owners,
develop and strengthen partnerships for sustainable forest management, and develop and
implement action plans to reduce deforestation and promote sustainable forest
management;
E. Sustainable Capacity Development and Education for Sustainable Development:
· Build capacity to monitor the state of environment;
· Develop core competencies to assist stakeholders in delivering sustainable development
programmes;
· Create the skills base and techniques for use in decision-making.
· The international community to provide technological, institutional, physical and
financial resources and to support SIDS in establishing national capacity development
coordination mechanisms and centres of excellence for training and applied research.
F. Monitoring and Evaluation:
· enhanced international coordination related to SIDS through the UN, donor support, and
reduced reporting burdens on SIDS;
· monitoring and periodic reporting on indicators on SIDS;
· strengthening of regional SIDS institutions for monitoring and coordination;
62. These recently agreed urgent requirements arising from this global review of SIDS have
been taken carefully into consideration in developing the objectives, activities and outcomes of
this IWCAM project.
63. Many of the Caribbean SIDS are signatory to, or have ratified, the Cartagena Convention for
the Protection and Development of the Marine Environment of the Wider Caribbean Region and
its associated Protocols. The need to address land-based sources of pollution is captured within
the Protocol Concerning pollution from Land-Based Sources and Activities adopted in 1999 by
the Cartagena Convention. This reflects the more global requirement identified by the UN Global
Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities.
The GPA was officially launched in November 1995, and is now considered to be an important
instrument for the protection of the marine environment. More than 100 countries declared their
commitment to protect and preserve this environment from the harmful effects of land-based
activities, and invited UNEP to act as the GPA Secretariat. The governments emphasised that
UNEP's Regional Seas Programmes provided an important mechanism to help implement the
GPA. The agreement includes an action plan for curbing and controlling pollution, habitat
23
destruction and other land-based activities affecting coastal and marine ecosystems. Although it
is not binding, it provides a framework for addressing some of the most significant threats to
marine ecosystems. However, only a few of the Caribbean SIDS countries have signed the
Cartagena Convention LBS Protocol so far, and to date none has ratified.
64. The Eleventh Meeting of the Forum of Ministers of Environment of Latin America and the
Caribbean (1998) identified one of the priority areas for inclusion in the Regional Programme of
Action as the Integrated Management of Water and Coastal Resources
65. The project components, objectives, outputs and outcomes are intended to have the project
reflect an integrated approach to IWCAM within the region. In so doing, it should also provide a
framework for countries wishing to design and implement free-standing, national IWCAM
projects. It is recognised that this regional initiative toward development and coordination of
IWCAM policies and activities cannot cover every need and eventuality. With this in mind,
countries are encouraged to work in parallel with this project to develop working and
transferable examples of IWCAM within their boundaries, and in coordination and partnership
with other SIDS in the region.
66. The project will address the need to provide realigned national standards and guidelines
pertinent to IWCAM, via a revision and rationalisation of national legislation and policy, and the
development of effective incentives and equitable cross-sectoral and stakeholder sharing of
responsibilities. These will be addressed in the context of existing national commitments to
relevant international conventions, treaties and accords including, inter alia, the Cartagena
Convention and its Protocols; the Convention on Biological Diversity; and the UN Framework
Convention on Climate Change and the Convention to Combat Desertification (taking into
account the recommendations of the national enabling activities carried out under these
Conventions); the OECS Declaration of Principles on Environmental Sustainability and other
regional initiatives. Emphasis will be placed on ensuring that the process of revision and
realignment is done with the full involvement of stakeholders at the national and regional level.
Hence there will be a need for close linkages to project activities dealing with awareness and
education, and strong project deliverables addressing community management and compliance
strategies. The project will also assist in providing guidance and implementation on the equitable
distribution of resource responsibilities through transferred benefit processes (e.g. transfer of
tariffs from resource users to support resource management), and will assist the countries in
exploring and adopting incentive-based, self-regulatory mechanisms for IWCAM at the national
level.
67. Attention is drawn to existing work already undertaken by UNEP to identify effective
frameworks and guidelines for IWCAM, and available as ICARM Technical Report Series No. 1
("Integrated Coastal Area and River Basin Management," UNEP and Priority Actions
Programme Regional Activity Centre, 1997) and No. 2 ("Report of the First Expert Working
Group Meeting on the Concept and Development of Practical Guidelines for Integrated Coastal
Area and River Basin Management,"1997).
68. The need for a more strategic regional approach to both IWCAM, and sustainable
development itself, is indicated by the complexity of the issues in relation to the relatively
24
poorly-developed state of the policy and institutional apparatus within the participating countries.
Additional justification for development of a regional strategic approach is provided by
evaluations of other GEF-funded interventions of similar scope and intensity, such as the
Caribbean Planning for Adaptation to Climate Change (CPACC). These evaluations confirm that
a flexible approach, which uses the results of continuous assessment of on-going and/or
completed interventions, to inform the design/redesign of subsequent phases, are likely to yield
the best long-term results. Consequently, the PDF B process has concluded that the full project
should help to define and establish a strategic approach to IWCAM within the region based on an
open and participatory partnership between the countries and the donor/lending agencies. The
development of such a strategic approach and the necessary mechanisms to support it has been
captured within the project components and will be implemented and established, as a project
priority, under guidance from the Project Steering Committee.
69. One particular focus that is considered to be of critical importance within the Caribbean
SIDS is the need to develop indicators and reporting techniques that reflect the impacts of the
project objectives and of regional and national IWCAM initiatives per se. The Intergovernmental
Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO has identified the importance of such activities, and
the need to be able to provide measurable performance changes within the complex relationships
that exist between coastal and watershed ecosystem health and function, and anthropogenic
activities (including socio-economic conditions and managerial decisions). This need has been
further generally reinforced through the World Summit on Sustainable Development's Plan of
Implementation3. It is essential that one of the targets of this project is the development of
effective IWCAM Impact Indicators linked to the condition and sustainability of natural
resources and biodiversity, the current status of economic development in the SIDS, the general
welfare of the towns and communities, other socio-economic issues, and long-term policy
expectations and short-comings. These indicators will be developed using the process, stress
reduction and environmental status indicator framework developed by the GEF International
Waters Task Force, which are already being applied in a number of GEF projects working on
transboundary issues.
70. During the PDF process, each country was requested to provide a list of between 1-3
Environmental Hotspots and 1-3 Sensitive Areas as part of a GIWA-style assessment to support
the selection of areas for demonstration activities (See Appendix 1 for description of selection
process for demonstration projects). These Hotspots and Sensitive Areas are defined as follows:
Environmental hot-spots = geographically defined watershed, coastal areas and other
areas of the sea, of national, regional and/or global significance, where the conditions are
such as to adversely affect human health, threaten ecosystem functioning, reduce
biodiversity and/or compromise resources and amenities of economic importance in a
manner that would appear to warrant priority management attention. A degraded area is
said to display significant and measurable environmental degradation.
Sensitive areas = geographically defined areas, of national regional and/or global
environmental significance which, although not degraded at present, are threatened with
3 IOC-UNESCO ICAM Dossier Publication `A Reference Guide on the Use of Indicators for Integrated
Coastal Management'.
25
future degradation, either because of sensitivity of the receptor or the magnitude of the
anthropogenic activity posing the threat.
Although this exercise was valuable in its targeted intention of selecting the demonstrations to be
funded under this project, there is a strong case for the development of a more formal
documentation of hotspots (including sensitive areas) which can be ear-marked for specific
attention and possible future funding. Such areas can then be targeted for replication of lessons
and best practices from the demonstration projects, and the need for policy reforms can be
supported using these examples. They would also serve as valuable sites to test and refine
IWCAM Impact Indicators (see Component 2 - below).
DELIVERY OF PROJECT BENEFITS THROUGH DEMONSTRATION ACTIVITIES
71. One of the principal aims throughout the development of this Project has been to address the
need to deliver real, `on-the-ground' benefits to the participating countries, which, while
realising the `global benefit' requirements of GEF, also recognise the need to change the adverse
conditions existing in the countries with respect to IWCAM issues. As a positive response to this
need, the PDF process identified the requirement for the Project to focus on demonstrations at
the national level to show how the actual on-the-ground threats might be addressed by concrete
actions, and how the results of these demonstration activities could then be captured, transferred
and replicated.
72. In order to rationalise an approach to determining which particular demonstration activities
would be of greatest value and where, the Steering Committee adopted the following approach:
· Regional agreement and adoption of the primary threats which should be addressed
through demonstration activities. These have been selected A. on the basis of the threats
identified in the National Reports and B. on the guidelines given through GEF
Operational Programme 9 (OP9) on SIDS eligible issues.
· National stakeholder census to identify up to three priority hotspot areas and three
priority sensitive areas in each country which are under pressure or vulnerable to these
primary threats. The selection process was modified from the GIWA (Global
International Waters Assessment) Hotspot Selection methodology.
· Agreement by the Steering Committee on a set of Selection Criteria for the final
Demonstration project proposals
· Adoption by each country of one or two particular geographical hotspots or sensitive
areas (where the thematic issues were eligible under OP 9) for development into a
Demonstration Concept paper.
· Review and feedback on the Demonstration Concepts by the Implementing Agencies
with advice from GEF regarding eligibility.
· Preparation and submission of a final Demonstration Project(s) by countries for inclusion
in the overall regional IWCAM project.
· Agreement and adoption of these final Demonstration projects by the Steering Committee
based on the previously agreed selection criteria.
26
73. The final selection of Demonstration Projects along with details of the selection process and
the hotspot priorities are attached in Appendix 1. A summary of the identified hotspots and
selected Demonstration Projects is given under the discussion of Component 1 (below).
74. The demonstration activities therefore represent a real and concrete response within the
IWCAM Project to resolving the actual activities on the ground which are creating the threats
and impacts. These demonstration activities will benefit the host country while providing
valuable, transferable lessons within the region and will also be of global value. Not only can the
lessons and experiences of such demonstration activities be replicated in-country as well as being
shared with other Caribbean SIDS countries, but they can also be transferable to other SIDS and
other pertinent IWCAM and sustainable development situations throughout the world. A classic
example of this is the recognised need to develop more appropriate and cost-effective
technologies for waste treatment. In the SIDS situation it is frequently not realistic to try and
develop a centralised sewage treatment system. The capital cost of such a system is high and the
maintenance is intensive and expensive. Many existing domestic wastewater handling systems
are in a poor state of repair and cannot be directly linked up to a central system. Furthermore, it
can be prohibitively costly and very disruptive to try and connect up small distant communities.
There are feasible and cost-effective alternatives, which can be developed on a community-by
community basis that, are very simple to maintain. The technology for this is also highly
applicable to individual resorts and hotels. These approaches and mechanisms, once developed
and proven, could be of tremendous advantage to other developing countries with similar
problems. Another example would be the development of indigenous technologies for freshwater
augmentation (incidentally, an area of concern that UNEP addresses in its sourcebooks on
freshwater augmentation methodologies, one of which focuses specifically on SIDS).
75. The Full Project will specifically address mechanisms for transfer of results and replication,
in order to ensure effective capture of best practices and lessons from these Demonstration
Projects. Each demonstration activity has been designed to substantively involve national and
local NGOs and community groups which are concerned stakeholders in the demo hot
spots/sensitive areas
76. As well as national demonstrations within identified hotspots and sensitive areas, the project
development phase has also identified the need for an overall regional demonstration of the use
of measurable indicators in support of IWCAM, and particularly policy development and
legislative realignment. On the basis of the principle of `User Pays' it would seem to be both
logical and fair if, for example, `downstream' private sector tourism enterprises were to transfer
some of their economic benefits from tourism into upstream management to clean-up both the
watershed and the associated coastal areas for the benefit of both tourists and the natural
environment. In order for this to be justified and promoted, and to ensure compatibility of data as
well as simplifying data collection and processing, a set of standard environmental status
indicators would need to be developed for different biological communities and habitats, and to
address different threats. This concept would be expanded beyond just indicators of species or
habitat welfare, and would aim to capture linkages with socio-economic welfare and effective
governance through the development of measurable indicators in those sectors also (e.g. process
indicators).. In view of its importance to the overall IWCAM concept, this important regional
demonstration has been articulated through a separate project Component (2).
27
PROJECT COMPONENTS, ACTIVITIES AND OUTCOMES
77. Based on the national reports and regional synthesis completed under the PDF-B, (see
Annex I) the regional priority needs for IWCAM for the Caribbean SIDS include:
· Direct action to address the more critical hotspots and issues, and to demonstrate
effective mitigation mechanisms that are appropriate for the Caribbean SIDS;
· National and regional capture of lessons and best practices relating to IWCAM issues,
coupled to a mechanism for transfer and replication of same;
· A detailed understanding of the policy and legislative constraints within national
IWCAM-related issues, translated into policy and legislative reform models, and linked
to a mechanism for transfer and replication of same
· The need for greater general awareness of the problems and more specific sensitisation of
IWCAM needs and issues at the senior stakeholder and policy-maker level, as well as
improved educational strategies and materials highlighting IWCAM
· A Hotspots Diagnostic Analysis (HDA) which compiles details on geographically distinct
hotspots and sensitive areas within each country, building on the concept of the GIWA-
style assessments undertaken in the PDF phase. This would be used to identify critical
areas in need of further action, areas that urgently require IWCAM Impact Indicators and
monitoring, and to assist in identifying the more urgent policy reforms necessary to
resolve the identified issues.
· The need for efficient and focused collection of relevant information, environmental
status indicators, and other measures of the effectiveness of the socio-economic or
governance implications of IWCAM (process indicators). These would be used to evolve
realistic and targeted policies, and to assess the impact of the IWCAM objectives inherent
within the project.
· Improved training on IWCAM issues and technology at both the national and regional
level
· Better networking and partnership within the region to A. ensure complementarity of
actions related to IWCAM rather than overlap and duplication of efforts, and B. to
develop more effective use of finances and manpower through stakeholder partnerships
In order to capture these needs, the project is divided into 5 major Components as described
below (Associated activities are presented in Table 6 -- Schematic Workplan and Timetable):
1. Demonstration, Capture and Transfer of Best Practices
2. Development Of IWCAM Process, Stress Reduction and Environmental Status Indicators
Framework
3. Policy, Legislation and Institutional Reforms
4. Regional and National Capacity Building and Sustainability
5. Project Management and Coordination
28
COMPONENT 1. DEMONSTRATION, CAPTURE AND TRANSFER OF BEST
PRACTICES
78. A priority focus within the overall project is to deliver real global benefits within the
participating countries through the selection and implementation of `on-the-ground' activities.
Component 1 activities will support the demonstration of actual working examples of IWCAM
within a defined watershed and/or coastal system boundary. These demonstrations will target
defined IWCAM national and regional hotspots, and will address OP 9 eligible priority issues as
identified in the root cause analysis.
79. Component 1 represents a crucial element of the project, which is the ground-level
demonstration of activities that can mitigate or resolve barriers to IWCAM at specific hotspots.
This component will further ensure that valuable information on lessons and best practices are
collected and disseminated for review by the regional stakeholders, that models and guidelines
are derived, and that countries are encouraged to implement these models and to adopt the
guidelines (where appropriate). Emphasis in this component will therefore be on demonstration,
capture, transfer and replication of lessons and best practices for IWCAM.
80. During the PDF B process, each participating country was requested to identify national
hotspots and sensitive areas pertinent to IWCAM using the GIWA (Global International Waters
Assessment) approach. Appendix 1 gives details of this approach and the selected national
Hotspots. Countries were then required to identify suitable demonstrations of IWCAM barrier
removal within an identified national hotspot or sensitive area. Following this the countries were
asked to submit brief concept papers identifying suitable demonstrations within a national
hotspot area. Table 3 provides a summary of the selected national Hotspots within the region,
along with the countries proposed concept areas for demonstration projects.
29
TABLE 3: SUMMARY OF THE HOTSPOT AND PROPOSED DEMONSTRATION
CONCEPT SITES
COUNTRY ANTIGUA/BARBUDA BAHAMAS
BARBADOS
CUBA
DOMINICA
Hotspot 1
NW Coast Antigua
Elizabeth Harbour St. Michaels
Cienfuegos
West Coast Dublanc
GIWA Score
74
68
74
83
62
Hotspot 2
St. John Harbour
West Coast
Cauto Watershed
Jimmit/Morge Espagnol
GIWA Score
65
73
83
69
Hotspot 3
SW Coast Watershed
Scotland District
Zaza Watershed
GIWA Score
58
70
68
Sensitive Area 1
Great Bird + Islands
Andros Island
Harrison's Cave
Cuyaguateje Watershed Carib Territory
GIWA Score
56.8
75.2
62.4
74.4
82.4
Sensitive Area 2
Jumby Bay
Maycocks Bay
Toa W/S
Penville
GIWA Score
44.8
54.4
71.2
72.8
Sensitive Area 3
Codrington Lagoon
Graeme Hall Swamp Hanabanilla Watershed
GIWA Score
80
48
69
Demo 1 Area
NW Coast + St. Johns Andros Island
St. Michaels
Cienfuegos Bay
Carib Territory
Hotspot/SA No.
Hotspots 1 + 2
Sens. Area 1
Hotspot 1
Hotspot 1
Sens. Area 1
Demo 2 Area
Elizabeth Harbour
Hotspot/SA No.
Hotspot 1
Priority Sites?
Yes. Hotspots Merged Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
TABLE 3: SUMMARY OF THE HOTSPOT AND PROPOSED DEMONSTRATION
CONCEPT SITES (Continued)
COUNTRY DOMINICAN REPUBLIC GRENADA
HAITI
JAMAICA
Hotspot 1
Haina Industrial Zone
Great River
Artibonite Delta
Portland Watershed
GIWA Score
68
52
100
75
Hotspot 2
Constanza Tourist Zone
La Gonave
Kingston Harbour
GIWA Score
64
72
70
Hotspot 3
Samana Nat. Park Zone
GIWA Score
63
Sensitive Area 1
Bani Dune Nat. Park
Grand E'Tang Lake
Grand Saline
Black River National Park
GIWA Score
68
72
89
54.4
Sensitive Area 2
Saona Island Nat. Park
Point Araquette
GIWA Score
68
88
Sensitive Area 3
GIWA Score
Demo 1 Area
Haina Ind
Grand E'Tang Lake
Artibonite Delta
Portland Watershed
Hotspot/SA No.
Hotspot 1
Sens. Area 1
Hotspot 1
Hotspot 1
Demo 2 Area
Constanza
National Parks (Black River)
Hotspot/SA No.
Hotspot 2
Sens. Area 1
Priority Sites?
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
30
COUNTRY ST KITTS & NEVIS
ST LUCIA
ST VINCE/GREN
TRINIDAD & TOBAGO
Hotspot 1
Basseterre Valley
Choc Watershed
Calliagua Bay
Caroni River Basin
GIWA Score
77
55
78
56
Hotspot 2
Rodney Bay Lagoon
Corem Watershed
GIWA Score
51
65
Hotspot 3
Diamond Estate
GIWA Score
59
Sensitive Area 1
St. Kitts MPA
Mabouya Valley
Grenadine Islands
Courland/Buccoo Watershed
GIWA Score
65.6
67.2
85.6
76.8
Sensitive Area 2
Point Sable Reserve
SVG Groundwater
GIWA Score
41.6
78.4
Sensitive Area 3
SVG MPA System
GIWA Score
75.2
Demo 1 Area
Basseterre Valley
Mabouya Valley
Grenadine Islands
Courland/Buccoo Watershed
Hotspot/SA No.
Hotspot 1
Sens. Area 1
Sens. Area 1
Sens. Area 1
Demo 2 Area
St. Kitts MPA
Calliagua Bay
Caroni River Basin
Hotspot/SA No.
Sens. Area 1
Hotspot 1
Hotspot 1
Priority Sites ?
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
81. The Project Steering Committee also developed and adopted a set of selection criteria for
these demonstration projects. In order to meet these selection criteria, proposals were expected to
meet the fundamental requirements of any GEF project vis-à-vis eligibility, and particularly to
demonstrate global environmental benefits, sustainability and replicability. Proposed activities
were required to show support from substantial co-funding consistent with normal GEF project
requirements. The actual demonstration development and selection process was carried out
during the PDF phase and is discussed in detail in Appendix 1, which also contains the full
details of the adopted Demonstration Projects. Table 4 (below) provides a summary of the
national demonstration projects which were formally adopted by the Steering Committee, and
which will target the identified hotspots to demonstrate applied solutions to IWCAM issues and
threats. The demonstration projects are categorised under sub-components, which highlight the
priority issues within the region. These sub-components reflect the principal thematic issues and
concerns as identified in the National Reports, in relation to OP9 eligible areas defined by GEF.
This is discussed in more detail under Appendix 1.
82. This component will aim to develop models and guidelines for policies and technologies, and
to implement these through effective mechanisms for transfer and replication to appropriate
countries and sites throughout the Caribbean SIDS. More obvious strategies will include the
development of an IWCAM Clearing House (See Component 4) for storage and dissemination of
pertinent information, along with websites, workshops, IW:LEARN, etc., but the project will
also aim to be proactive and enthusiastic in its promotion of best practices throughout the project
countries and partnerships.
31
TABLE 4:
LIST OF DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS BY SUB-COMPONENT AND
COUNTRY
SUB-COMPONENT
COUNTRY
TITLE OF DEMONSTRATION PROJECT
St. Kitts and Nevis
Rehabilitation and Management of the Basseterre Valley as a Protection Measure
for the Underlying Aquifer
A: Water Resource Conservation and
Management
St. Lucia
Protecting and Valuing Watershed Services and Developing Management
Incentives in the Fond D'or Watershed Area of St. Lucia
Antigua and Barbuda Mitigation of Groundwater and Coastal Impacts from Sewage Discharges from
St. John
B: Wastewater Treatment and
Bahamas - Exuma
Marina Waste Management at Elizabeth Harbour in Exuma, Bahamas
Management
Dominican Republic Mitigation of Impacts of Industrial Wastes on the Lower Haina River Basin and
its Coast
Bahamas - Andros
Land and Sea Use Planning for Water Recharge Protection and Management in
Andros, Bahamas
C: Land-use Planning, Zoning and
Alternative practices
Trinidad and Tobago Land-Use Planning and Watershed Restoration as part of a Focused IWCAM
Demonstration in the Courland Watershed and Buccoo Reef Area
Cuba
Application of IWCAM Concepts at Cienfuegos Bay and Watershed
D: Targeted Model IWCAM
Jamaica
An Integrated Approach to Managing the Marine, Coastal and Watershed
Resources of east-central Portland
83. Particular emphasis will be placed on the capture and synthesis of information pertinent to
institutional re-structuring and strengthening, policy reform and legislative amendments to
support IWCAM (see Component 3). These three closely interrelated issues are frequently
identified as a necessity for the evolution of effective IWCAM within this region. Policy reforms
and amendments to legislation will be promoted through regional guidelines, workshops and
direct lobbying at the policy level by the project through its Steering Committee, as well as
through the pertinent Convention secretariats and CoPs. Institutional strengthening and re-
structuring to support such policy and legislative reforms would be an integral and logical part of
this promotional package.
84. It should be noted that some countries intend to develop closely linked and coordinated GEF
Medium-Sized projects during the early stages of the proposed Regional IWCAM Project. These
will also effectively act as IWCAM demonstrations and will address closely related issues and
concerns. They will, however, operate over a wider thematic or geographical area. Consequently
these intended initiatives will require a more complex project design with more detailed, `stand-
alone' funding mechanisms. These MSP initiatives will coordinate closely with the main project
and the lessons and best practices will be captured, synthesised, transferred and replicated under
the same mechanisms.
85. Figure 1 gives the locations of all of the participating Caribbean SIDS in this project. It also
shows the geographic location of the selected demonstration hot spots around the Caribbean
SIDS. The specific outputs and outcomes from each Demonstration Project are listed within the
Demonstration Project Documents themselves (see Appendix 1). However, in general terms the
overall Component Activities include:
32
COMPONENT 1 ACTIVITIES:
1.1 Implementation and management of a selection of representative 9 demonstration
projects in 8 countries, which address the priority regional IWCAM concerns within
selected critical hotspots, and which have been chosen in a clear and participatory
manner (see Appendix 1). Demonstration project progress will be carefully monitored to
ensure deliver of best practices and lessons for capture by other project components.
1.2 Coordination and collection of all lessons, best practices and alternative technologies and
strategies arising from the Demonstration Projects which identify possible solutions and
mitigations to the threats and root causes which are acting as barriers to IWCAM at a
national and regional level;
1.3 Development of effective replication strategies and mechanisms for transferring and
replicating the lessons and practices arising from the demonstration projects, both within
and beyond the region.
COMPONENT 1 OUTCOMES:
Successful demonstration of concrete solutions and mitigations to specific threats to IWCAM.
The development and distribution of best lessons and practices arising from these
demonstrations. Models and guidelines for policy, legislative and institutional reform available
to countries. Best lessons and practices being effectively replicated in other hotspots and critical
areas. Full stakeholder participation in the development, implementation and monitoring of
national demonstration activities.
COMPONENT 2. DEVELOPMENT OF IWCAM PROCESS, STRESS REDUCTION AND
ENVIRONMENTAL STATUS INDICATORS FRAMEWORK
86. This Component will focus specifically on creating indicators framework to monitor the
long-term progress and impact of the overall IWCAM strategy for SIDS in the context of
process, stress reduction and environmental status indicators as recommended by the GEF. The
intention is to identify an optimal indicator framework to monitor changes in the state of the
watershed and coastal environments, monitor the trends in socio-economic pressures and
conditions in watershed communities and coastal towns, and to assess the efficacy of IWCAM
in addressing these issues and mitigating harmful impacts.
87. Although there is still a clear need for basic environmental and stress reduction indicators,
there is also clearly an urgency to develop managementrelated (e.g. process) indicators to
measure and assess the sustainability of current and planned land and sea usage. Furthermore,
examples of socio-economic indicators which describe the social and economic conditions
related to coastal and watershed communities are rare, yet such measurable parameters are vital
if there is to be a true representation of the human component within IWCAM strategy and
policy. Finally, the use of such indicators, which have been developed specifically for the
measurement, and assessment of governance performance for IWCAM are almost unknown.
Where this has been tried, difficulties have been encountered in linking such governance issues
to on-the-ground changes.
33
88. In order to address this need at the Caribbean SIDS level the project will undertake to
generally develop and test the efficacy of a suite of indicators addressing process, stress
reduction and environmental status trends and impacts; link these measurable indicators to a
policy and legislative feedback process; and drive that policy more toward a `beneficiary-pays'
environment where those gaining the greatest benefits from IWCAM are transferring a
proportion of those benefits back into the system to support management at a multi-sectoral
level, particularly focusing on the management-related activities of watershed and coastal
communities.
COMPONENT 2 ACTIVITIES:
2.1 Review existing national and regional level environmental status, process and stress
reduction indicator frameworks and identify weaknesses in IWCAM context;
2.2 Development of template for national level IWCAM environmental status, process and
stress reduction indicators (harvesting experiences from best practices looking at Demo-
level environmental status indicators, and taking into account results of Output 3.2 on
IWCAM policy/legislative reform recommendations);
2.3 Conduct hotspot diagnostic analyses (HSDA) of each of the (non-demo) hotspots in each
country, including identification of priority water-related issues/problems, immediate
and root causes and required reforms. Prepare initial project concepts for follow-
up/project preparation;
2.4 Establish a regional centre for storage of Indicator-related information and as a Centre of
Excellence for Indicator Training. Provide Indicator training to appropriate stakeholder
groups in application of IWCAM-oriented process, stress reduction and environmental
status indicators;
2.5 Pilot establishment (including capacity building) of IWCAM process, stress reduction
and environmental status indicator monitoring system in one country using templates
from 2.2 and 2.3.
COMPONENT 2 OUTCOMES:
Process, stress-reduction, and environmental status indicators framework established and
national and regional capacities for indicator monitoring enhanced.
COMPONENT 3: POLICY, LEGISLATIVE AND INSTITUTIONAL REFORM FOR
IWCAM
89. This Component will address the urgent need for amendment and reform to policy,
legislation and institutional arrangements pertinent to IWCAM. These needs have been clearly
identified through the PDF B national reports. In particular, these national reports considered that
the lack of appropriate and enacted policy and legislation addressing threats and their root causes
represents a major barrier to successful IWCAM.
34
90. There is also concern for the effective sustainability of IWCAM concepts and objectives in
the region in the absence of sufficient commitment to regional and international multilateral
environmental agreements. The participating countries recognise a number of such MEAs and
have undergone accession to such agreements (see Table 1 above). However, many of the
countries have yet to ratify these agreements. Such ratification usually requires more specific
commitments from the countries and frequently involves proof of adoption of the inherent
concepts of an MEA through specific policy and legislative amendments and institutional
realignment.
91. For IWCAM to achieve sustainability within the region it will now be necessary for the
countries to reform their policy and legislation to capture IWCAM concepts, especially those
inherent in the aforementioned MEAs. Institutional strengthening and rationalisation (especially
integrated restructuring of the multisectoral stakeholder management approach) will also be a
requirement linked closely to capacity building. Some of the policy, legislation and institutional
reforms, identified by the countries in their National Reports are summarised in Table 5. By time
of endorsement, specific indicators will be included for specific outcomes in terms of national
reforms being sought.
Table 5. Policy, legislatives and institutional reforms identified by the countries
COUNTR Policy and legislative reforms Institutional
reforms
Y
Antigua and
National Physical Development Plan;
Improving the planning capabilities in
Barbuda
Ministries involved with watersheds
and coastal areas management,
Forestry and Wildlife Act;
Fisheries Act;
Environmental Health Act
To involve all relevant institutions and
agencies, including NGOs/CBOs, and
to develop appropriate mechanisms of
Solid Waste Management Act.
cooperation and collaboration.
Enforcement/compliance of environmental laws
relates to stakeholder participation in management of
the resource
Bahamas
Creation/completion of national laws and/or specific
Establish/Enhance the Coastal Zone
ICM regulations in The Bahamas,
Management Authority
Specific coastal development regulations in the
ICM Coordination
coastal communities.
Code of Construction in the Coastal Zone
Support to the local NGOs, interest
groups, small-scale resource users,
and others to participate actively in
the ICM planning and management
process
Permit Review/Approval Process
Preparations of specific
Environmental Management Plans
(EMPs)
User Charges
35
Barbados
Adoption of Integrated Watershed and Coastal Areas
Develop overarching Institutional
Management Policy
Framework for Sustainable
Development
Modify Drainage Act
Enforcement of Coastal Zone Management Act
Repeal Porey and Three Houses Spring Acts.
Develop regulations to facilitate enforcement of
Coastal Zone Management Act
Cuba
Strengthen the national inspection system
Strengthen stakeholder an community
participation through local
governments and environmental
education
Strengthen application of the law-decree 212 on Strengthen the National System of
Coastal Zone Management
Environmental Monitoring,
specifically for beach waters,
sediment transport and pollutants
loads to coastal zones
Strengthen Land Use Plans in relation to watersheds Increase collaboration and information
and coastal zones
exchange between stakeholders
through the National and Provincial
Watersheds Councils
Better integrate EIA and environment licensing for
Create a multisectorial Group within
impacts on coastal zones of development projects
the Technical Advisory Group of the
National and Provincial Watersheds
Councils for the analysis of
interrelations between watersheds and
coastal areas management and for the
development of Geographical
Information Systems
Dominica
The formalization and legitimation of the structures
Strengthening of institutional
by legislative mandate. The terms of reference of
structures and administrative capacity
each structural unit/committee will be established in
including cross-sectoral and inter-
the legislative mandate to ensure the process.
agency structures to integrate
economic and environmental planning
and policy process and outcomes.
Improving the capacity of national enforcing
agencies, to implement existing legislation on
watershed and coastal zone management.
Dominican
Establish a watershed land use planning mechanism Creation of Watershed Authorities to
Republic
taking into account integrated management principles
decentralize the decision-making
Design and implementation of a National Programme process
of Watersheds and Coastal Areas Management
Better integrate EIA and environment licensing for
impacts on coastal zones of development projects
Grenada Legal
review;
Rationalized system for environmental
Environmental audit;
management;
Standards development
Civil society and general public
participation in decision making
process
Haiti
Elaboration/ Finalization of relevant Policy
Decentralization and Institutional
instruments related to water/watershed and coastal
Strengthening
zones.
An innovative Legal Framework.
Human Resources Capacity Building
for Integrated Management of
Watersheds and Coastal Areas
Jamaica
Draft a policy outlining the establishment of a water
Draft a policy to define the
quality pooling system
information sharing requirement
among government agencies
36
St. Kitts and
Specific regulations drafted and enacted to implement Train technical staff among the
Nevis
the National Conservation and Environmental
various agencies that contribute
Protection Act (NCEPA) 1987.
towards the management of various
sectors of the watershed water
resources management, water quality
monitoring, coastal areas management
St. Lucia
The development of a comprehensive policy aimed at
The establishment of a coordinating
fostering the integration of watershed management
mechanism to facilitate linkages
and coastal area management issues.
between national institutions involved
in watershed management and coastal
area management.
The strengthening of national
institutions and organisations involved
in watershed management and coastal
area management.
The establishment of a legal framework for
The development of frameworks for
integration of watershed management and coastal area the integration of watershed
management.
management and coastal area
management activities at the
watershed and community levels.
St. \Vincent
Harmonization of legislation and adaptation of Facilitate intersectoral cooperation
and the
regional guidelines and policies where necessary.
between all Ministries and
Grenadines
Departments
Regulations to support Environmental Services Act
no. 15 of 1991
Trinidad and
Develop policies for coastal zone, watershed and
Establish financially autonomous
Tabago
water resources management
Water Resources Management
Authority with Watershed and Coastal
Units
Develop Coastal Zone Management Strategy and Plan Establish Formal and informal
(including disaster management)
mechanisms for Stakeholder
Participation
Develop Plan for the integration of watersheds and
Develop database and information
coastal zones
systems, and decision support systems
Draft Water Resources , Watershed , and Coastal
Develop and implement Public
Zone Management Acts and present for enactment
Awareness/Education Programme
Prepare Coastal Zone and Watershed
Establish Training and Scholarship
Hazards/Vulnerability maps for Hydrologic, Seismic
Programmes
and Chemical Hazards
Establish Coastal Zone and Watershed Monitoring
and Assessment Programme
Establish Coastal Zones, upstream and seaward
extensions and supporting watersheds as legal entities
92. This component will act on best lessons and practices arising from Component 1, as well as
recognising the value of other IWCAM related approaches tested and adopted elsewhere.
Specific focus will be given to the needs identified from the Hotspot Diagnostic Analysis
(Component 2.4 above). An incentive mechanism will be developed to encourage ratification of
important MEAs and protocols such as the Cartagena Convention's Protocol on Land Based
Sources of Pollution, which is very pertinent to the problems of the Caribbean SIDS.
37
COMPONENT 3 ACTIVITIES:
3.1 A comprehensive review of national policy, legislation and institutional structures
identifying barriers to IWCAM and providing recommendations and guidelines for
barrier removal;
3.2 A set of regional guidelines (including working examples from the Demonstration
Projects) addressing national policy, legislative and institutional reform to support and
promote IWCAM (taking into account also relevant regional conventions and treaties).
These guidelines to be derived from national reviews, participatory regional stakeholder
workshops, and the demonstration projects. Particular consideration in developing these
guidelines will be given to the results of the Hotspots Diagnostic Analysis under
Component 2.4;
3.3 An active regional programme for amendment of national legislation and policy and
improvement and restructuring of institutional arrangements to capture IWCAM
requirements. In parallel with this regional programme, develop a programme of
incentives and awareness of the need for SIDS to ratify those IEAs, Conventions and
Treaties pertinent to IWCAM. In particular countries will be encouraged to sign up to
and adopt the protocols associated with the Cartagena Convention, which focuses
specifically on the Wider Caribbean area, specifically the LBS Protocol. Signature and
ratification to this and other relevant protocols and conventions will be one of the
indicators established and measure under Component 2.
COMPONENT 3 OUTCOMES:
National policies, legislation and institutional structures reformed and realigned to reflect the
objectives of IWCAM and to capture the requirements of the more pertinent regional and
international MEAs.
COMPONENT 4. REGIONAL AND NATIONAL CAPACITY BUILDING AND
SUSTAINABILITY FOR IWCAM
93. Component 4 addresses the need for regional integration and networking to develop active
partnerships for IWCAM in the areas of, public awareness and stakeholders participation, policy-
level sensitisation, evolution of educational materials and new curricula, training, secondment,
and the development of a long-term strategy for sustainable IWCAM at the regional level.
94. Effective IWCAM in the Caribbean SIDS requires planning, coordination, and knowledge-
sharing among the wide range of agencies and programmes involved in IWCAM-related
activities. The Caribbean has a long history of extensive but often poorly coordinated donor
support to environmental programmes. The GEF and other donors working in the Caribbean
recognise the need to co-ordinate their programmes in order to build on synergies and avoid
duplication. Consequently, this component also aims to develop a more strategic approach to
partnerships in the Caribbean through the review of existing and planned IWCAM related
activities, development of partnership networking, promotion of knowledge sharing on existing
and emerging Caribbean IWCAM initiatives among involved national, regional and international
institutions; and development of an agreed strategic approach and work-plan for donor support
38
and regional cooperation in the Caribbean SIDS. This component will also promote the
development of a mechanism for coordination between regional agencies, linked to the
development of a regional database to support such coordination.
95. One of the project activities under Component 4 is the establishment of a Regional Clearing
House mechanism which will capture inputs form all of the country Regional Project activities as
well as the Demonstration Project activities. This will be linked to Component 1.3 where
activities are identified to develop mechanisms for the transfer of lessons and best practices and
Component 5.8 where a regional information system will be established. In the context of
Component 4, 4.5 addresses Project Networking that aims to develop working project linkages
and partnerships through national and regional institutions. Similar linkages to other IWCAM
related projects, and the development of a Regional Partnership Forum. Although the specific
outlets for such information dissemination have not as yet been identified, this would be a
primary function and requirement of the overall integrated nature of the project, both at the
national, regional and global level. Until the necessary IWCAM regional management structure
has been established it would be difficult to propagate and develop any such linkages. Once the
project is under implementation a high priority will be given to developing these critical linkages
and relationships for information-sharing regionally through the stakeholder and partnership
forums, and by active contact at the global level. Clearly, within the concepts of stakeholder
participation which are an essential component of the overall fabric of the project, part of the
success of this participation will rely on the effective sharing and dissemination of all project
information to and between all parties
COMPONENT 4 ACTIVITIES:
4.1 National workshops on awareness and multisectoral sensitisation to IWCAM issues,
coupled to a dynamic long-term awareness campaign that targets all sectors and
stakeholders, with particular focus on sensitisation at the policy level. This to include a
feedback mechanism to assess improvements in the understanding and support for
IWCAM mechanisms and concepts to allow for fine-tuning and targeting of further
awareness activities.
4.2 Identify, strengthen, and involve Stakeholders in IWCAM issues in the Region,
including Monitoring and Evaluation, development of performance indicators.
4.3 Training and education activities. Training and secondment (where applicable) of
IWCAM staff throughout the region, including regional training networks supported
through IW:LEARN and similar initiatives. The development and use of effective
IWCAM educational materials in regional curricula;
4.4 A regional strategy for the sustainable promotion and implementation of IWCAM
beyond the project lifetime, with mechanisms for regular review, evaluation and
improvement. This should include specific post-project, stakeholder-sponsored
evaluation mechanisms to assess the continuing effectiveness of the GEF project
initiative. This strategy will also identify incentives to move national and regional
institutions toward the establishment of an appropriate institutional framework for
IWCAM.
4.5 Project Networking through an established network of IWCAM regional institutions and
via two-way linkages with other IWCAM-related project within and outside the region.
39
This would include networking with regional partners (donors, NGOs, private sector,
etc) and development of an active partnership forum within the region (including
countries external to project funding but directly linked to the Caribbean regional
IWCAM and SIDS process). A primary objective of this forum would be more efficient
and cost-effective use of financial and human resources in the development and
sustainability of IWCAM and related environmental protection and sustainable
development activities. To this end, partners and countries would work closely to
develop a strategic approach to IWCAM within the Caribbean.
4.6 An established regional IWCAM Clearing House to capture and store all information,
lessons and practices arising from this project and available from other projects. This
Clearing House will also act as a repository of linkages to more technical regional and
IWCAM information. This IWCAM Clearing House system would need to be closely
linked (if not amalgamated) to the GPA Clearing House Mechanism.
COMPONENT 4 OUTCOMES:
Improved sensitisation, awareness and capacity throughout all sectors with respect to IWCAM.
An active, long-term, sustainable regional mechanism supporting IWCAM. Effective networking
to share information alongside a Partnership Forum acting to build working relationships within
IWCAM. An active Clearing House to sharing and dispersing information. Fully involved
stakeholders and improved civil society.
COMPONENT 5. PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND COORDINATION
96. Component 5 addresses overall project management, steering, reporting and evaluation.
Project management will be invested in the Project Coordination Unit, which will undertake the
handling of day-to-day project issues and requirements. Overall project decision-making at the
policy level will be the responsibility of the Project Steering Committee (PSC), which will
function as the primary policy body for the participating countries in cooperation with the GEF
Implementing Agencies and the Executing Agencies.
COMPONENT 5 ACTIVITIES:
5.1 Establish effective Project Management through timely implementation of activities and
achievement of benchmark outputs;
5.2 Establish an all-country Regional Project Steering Committee working in unison with the
implementing and executing agencies and their representatives to provide regional
project ownership and oversight at the policy level;
5.3 Establish National Intersectoral Committees to capture IWCAM concepts from the
project at the national level;
5.4 Establish an Implementing Agency/Executing Agency Management Group to advise the
Regional Project Steering Committee on UN GEF eligibility, procedural and policy
issues.
5.5 Establish a Regional Technical Advisory Group that provides accurate and up-to-date
technical advice and guidance to the Steering Committee on issues relating to IWCAM;
5.6 Undertake Project Reporting on activities and outputs to the PSC, along with accurate
reviews of the project work-plan and budget;
40
5.7 Undertake Project Evaluation as a standard GEF requirement to ensure that indicators
are measuring satisfactory and sustainable project success
5.8
Develop a Comprehensive Information Management System for the project
implementation
COMPONENT 5 OUTCOMES:
Effective project management at the national and regional level. National Intersectoral
Committees capturing and promoting IWCAM best practices. Project evaluations reflecting
successful and sustainable project objectives. An active and effective sustainable regional
information management system in place.
41
TABLE 6:
PROJECT WORKPLAN AND TIMETABLE - COMPONENT ONE
COMPONENTS AND OUTPUTS
YEAR 1
YEAR 2
YEAR 3
YEAR 4
YEAR 5
Quarterly
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
DEMONSTRATION, CAPTURE AND TRANSFER OF BEST
1 PRACTICES
1.1 Demonstration Implementation
Initiation & management of demonstration projects
X X X X
X X X X X X X X
X X X X
X X
Development of complementary MSPs and non-demo hotspot
concepts
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Demo Project support (Monitoring and Evaluation)
X X X X
X X X X X X X X
X X X X
X X X X
1.2 Capture of Lessons and Best Practices
Review of reports from Demo projects
X
X
X
X
X
Reports from R-TAGS on general IWCAM lessons and practices
X
X
X
X
X
Development of and access to a project database
X X X X
Input of information into clearing house
X
X
X
X
X
Regional stakeholder review of lessons and practices from Demos and
general IWCAM approaches through Partnership Forum
X
X
X
X
X
1.3
Transfer and Replication of Lessons and Practices
Development of mechanisms for transfer of lessons and best practices
throughout region
X X X X X X
X
X
X
Development of Website Pages
X X X X X X
Linkages to IW:LEARN
X X X X X X
1
TABLE 6:
PROJECT WORKPLAN AND TIMETABLE - COMPONENT TWO
COMPONENTS AND OUTPUTS
YEAR 1
YEAR 2
YEAR 3
YEAR 4
YEAR 5
Quarterly
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3
4
1 2 3 4
DEVELOPMENT OF IWCAM PROCESS, STRESS REDUCTION AND
2 ENVIRONMENTAL STATUS INDICATOR FRAMEWORKS
2.1 Review IWCAM indicators
Review national and regional Environmental Status Indicator mechanisms
X X
X
Review national and regional Stress Reduction Indicator mechanisms
X X
X
Review national and regional Process Indicators
X X
X
2.2 Develop National Indicator Templates
Harvest information from Demonstration Projects on Environmental Status
indicators
X X X X
X
X
Develop and disseminate templates for Environmental Status Indicators
X
X
X
X
Harvest information on policy and legislative process and stress reduction
indicators from 4.2 and Demonstration Projects
X X X X
X
X
Develop and disseminate templates for Process and Stress Reduction
Indicators
X
X
X
X
Undertake National Hotspot Diagnostic Analysis
2.3
Identify national 'non-demo' Hotspots and Sensitive Areas and their IWCAM
problems and root causes
X
X
Identify required reforms
X X
Develop Concept papers for follow-up activities
X X
2.4 Indicator Coordination and Training
Establish a regional centre for storage of Indicator-related information
X X
Develop regional centre as a Centre of Excellence for Indicator Training
X
X
X
Training for stakeholders in application of process, stress reduction and
environmental status indicators
X X
X
X
2.5 Indicator Demonstration
Establishment (including capacity building) of IWCAM process, stress
reduction and environmental status indicator monitoring system in one
country using new templates
X X
X
X
2
TABLE 6:
PROJECT WORKPLAN AND TIMETABLE - COMPONENT THREE
COMPONENTS AND OUTPUTS
YEAR 1
YEAR 2
YEAR 3
YEAR 4
YEAR 5
Quarterly
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
3 POLICY, LEGISLATION AND INSTITUTIONAL REFORMS
3.1 Review of national policy, legislation and institutional structures
Reviews of national policies and structures
X
X
Identification of barriers to IWCAM
X
X
3.2 Development of models and guidelines
Consolidation of inputs and lessons from national reviews, participatory
stakeholder workshops, and demo projects
X
X
Identification of specific reform requirements based on Hotspot
Diagnostic Analyses
X
X
Development of a set of regional guidelines taking into account
requirements of relevant regional conventions and treaties
X
X X X
3.3 Programme for regional policy, legislative and institutional reform
Development of an active regional programme for amendment of national
legislation/policy and improvement & restructuring of institutional
arrangements
X X X X
X
X
X
X
X
Parallel development of incentives, and awareness of the need for SIDS
to ratify those IEAs, Conventions and Treaties pertinent to IWCAM
(Especially Cartagena Convention and Protocols)
X X X X
X
X
X
X
X
3
TABLE 6:
PROJECT WORKPLAN AND TIMETABLE - COMPONENT FOUR
COMPONENTS AND OUTPUTS
YEAR 1
YEAR 2
YEAR 3
YEAR 4
YEAR 5
Quarterly
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
REGIONAL AND NATIONAL CAPACITY BUILDING AND SUSTAINABILITY
4
4. Aw
1
areness and Sensitisation
National & Regional Workshops on needs and target audiences
X
X
X
Multisectoral awareness campaign with feedback mechanisms
X
X
X X
X X
X X
X X
4.2 Stakeholders Involvement
Identify, strengthen and involve stakeholders
X X X X X X X X
X X X X
X X X X
X X X X
4. Education & Trai
3
ning
Educational Workshops (linked to Awareness Workshops)
X
X
X
Production of educational materials and incorporation into regional curricula
X
X
X
Identification and implementation of training needs and regional training networks
X X
X X
X X
X X
Regional training workshops & networking through IW:LEARN
X
X
X
X
Inter-country secondment
X
X
X
4. Strategy for IW
4
CAM Regional Sustainability
Development of IWCAM regional strategic approach
X X X X
Assistance with identifying long term funding mechanisms for IWCAM regional strategic approach
X X X X X X
Incentives for national and regional adoption of IWCAM strategies and arrangements
X X X X X X
Review and Evaluation Mechanisms for Strategic Approach, including a stakeholder-sponsored mechanism for
post-project evaluation of GEF IWCAM objectives
X
X
4. P
5 roject Networking
Linkages to national/regional institutions
X X X X
X
X
X
X
Linkages to other IWCAM related projects
X X X X
X
X
X
X
Development of Regional Partnership Forum
X
X
X
X
X
4.6
A Regional IWCAM Clearing House to capture and store all IWCAM information (Link to GPA-CHM)
Development of Clearing House
X
X
X
X
X
X
Linkages to GPA-CHM
X
X
X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X
Networking with countries
X
X
X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X
4
TABLE 6:
PROJECT WORKPLAN AND TIMETABLE - COMPONENT FIVE
COMPONENTS AND OUTPUTS
YEAR 1
YEAR 2
YEAR 3
YEAR 4
YEAR 5
Quarterly
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
REGIONAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND
5 COORDINATION
5.1 Project Management
Establish Project Coordination Unit
X
Contract staff and consultants
X X
X X
X X
5.2 Regional Project Steering
Steering Committee Meetings (project monitoring, workplan and
budget reviews)
X
X
X
X
X
5.3
National Project Steering (National Intersectoral Committees)
Meetings of National Intersectoral Committees
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Day-to-Day inputs by members
X X X X
X X X X X X X X
X X X X
X X X X
5.4 IA/EA Management Group
Annual IA/EA Meetings
X
X
X
X
X
EA Interim Management Discussions
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
5.5 Project Technical Support
Meetings of Regional Technical Advisory Group (To provide
technical support and advice to Steering Committee)
X
X
X
X
X
5.6 Project Reporting
Reports from Demo Projects to PCU
X X X X
X X X X X X X X
X X X X
X X X X
Reports from PCU to Steering Committee
X
X
X
X
X
Reports from Steering Committee to EA/IAs
X
X
X
X
X
5.7 Project Evaluation
IA Evaluation Requirements
X X X X
X X X X X X X X
X X X X
X X X X
GEF Evaluation Requirements
X
X X
X
X
X
X
5.8 Project Information Management System
Establish Regional Project Information System
X X X X
X X
National inputs and outputs related to Information Management
System
X X X
X X X X X X X X
X X X X
X X X X
5
RISKS & SUSTAINABILITY
97. Integrated planning and management are still not widely practiced within Caribbean SIDS,
although there is a growing understanding of the concept and the need. A considerable amount of
time and effort will therefore be required to foster a fresh philosophical and conceptual approach
among the relevant decision-makers, as well as field personnel. The long-term success of the
Project will ultimately rest on the political willingness of the participating countries to cooperate
and to sustain the Project's outputs well after its completion. To a large extent, the level of this risk
will depend on the success of the proposed public education and awareness activities, and the
extent to which the public is motivated to participate in the implementation of the project. This risk
will be minimised by the deliberate inclusion of major stakeholders in the implementation of the
project objectives, as well as through the national IWCAM demonstrations (all of which foster
stakeholder participation, along with dissemination of information on the demonstration approach
and objectives). Such stakeholder participation must be seen as a key theme and essential
requirement throughout all of the components and activities of the project. By creating a higher
level of awareness and support for IWCAM activities within such key stakeholders as the NGOs,
and the general public, the intention would be to minimise the risk from political indifference by
creating stakeholder/electorate pressure to ensure that political will and support is developed and
sustained.
98. The decision to incorporate a component into the project, which would establish a more
strategic regional coordination framework, has been prompted by recognition of the institutional
weaknesses that exist at the national and regional level, in IWCAM in particular and environmental
management and sustainable development in general. Also, it is clear that both the donors and the
recipient countries are concerned about the apparent replication of project objectives and the lack of
coordination between related projects, donors and countries over their long-term objectives. It is
intended to mitigate this risk through specific activities and outputs within Project Component 4.
99. Specific note is made of the need to coordinate with other GEF-funded regional projects. These
include Mainstreaming Adaptations to Climate Change (MACC), which builds on the work of the
previous GEF-funded project Caribbean Planning for Adaptation to Climate Change (CPACC). In
this respect, the current proposed project intends to develop a close relationship with the MACC
project. This relationship may include developing agreements (e.g., Memoranda of Cooperation), as
appropriate, for the coordination of selected activities of the IWCAM project with activities
sponsored under the MACC project. Particular cooperation will be sought in the areas of water
supply, land use, and climate change, where such coordination can lead to mutual benefits to both
projects and the participating countries, and avoid unnecessary duplication of efforts and resources.
It is intended that this relationship, to be facilitated by the GEF Implementing Agencies (UNEP,
UNDP and the World Bank) and the various Co-Executing Agencies (CAR/RCU, CEHI and OAS)
for each project (and include the participation of the respective Project Steering Committees), will
identify the need to cooperate on the following issues:
43
· Identification of opportunities for specific cooperation
· Coordination (where appropriate) of requests for information from government and/or
regional agencies
· Cooperation (where appropriate) in the use of regional human resources and institutional
assets
· A general liaison function for all aspects that may be common for the successful
implementation of both projects
· Information exchange on project implementation (reports on progress, barriers, options)
100. Another important GEF initiative under current development is the Caribbean Large Marine
Ecosystem project. It is because of this particular project development that the current IWCAM
project proposal does not directly address coastal fisheries and related offshore resources. However,
clearly there are important linkages and much of what IWCAM will address relates to the welfare
of Caribbean natural resources within the LME. Every effort will be made within both projects to
ensure close coordination and complementarity and to share related lessons and best practices.
101. It is further intended that the managers of the project implementation/coordination units for
all three of these GEF initiatives would closely liase for the purposes of implementing the
provisions here outlined. Such a liaison may, however, become inherent within the IWCAM
project's overall sub-component target for closer regional coordination and participation between
all countries and partners/donors.
102. The Caribbean region is particularly prone to natural hazards such as hurricanes, tropical
storms, earthquakes and volcanic activity. Theses events, catastrophic in themselves, can further
result in flooding and landslides. Owing to the frequency of these hazards, and the extensive
damage, which they often cause, many countries have traditionally focused their efforts on post-
disaster response rather than on mitigation. Most countries in the region are now beginning to
develop early-warning systems and disaster management plans. The potential for such a natural
disaster, which could (temporarily at least) close down project activities, should be recognised.
103. In recognition of the increased general vulnerability of people and property to natural
disasters, the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted a resolution in the late 1980's
designating the last decade of the twentieth century as the International Decade for Natural Disaster
Reduction. This resolution stated: "The objective of the IDNDR is to reduce through concerted
international action, especially in developing countries, the loss of life, property damage and social
and economic disruption caused by natural disasters such as earthquakes, windstorms, tsunamis,
floods, landslides, volcanic eruptions, wildfires, grasshopper and locust infestation, drought and
desertification and other calamities of natural origin."
The United Nations called on all governments to:
· formulate natural disaster mitigation programmes
· participate in concerted international action to reduce the effects of natural disasters
· establish, as appropriate, national committees in co-operation with relevant scientific and
technological communities
· encourage the provision of appropriate support from public and private sectors
44
· take measures to increase public awareness of damage risk potential and the value of
preventative and mitigation measures.
The principle aim of the IDNDR is to capitalise on existing knowledge of ways whereby the impact
of these natural events can be mitigated, and to foster the systematic transfer of this knowledge to
those countries and communities recognisably most at risk. The project should consider part of its
implementation of regional assistance to be a role in coordinating, where relevant and appropriate
and within the context of IWCAM, with the Scientific and Technical Committee of IDNDR, and
ensuring that the PCU has access to any scientific and technical outputs from this committee and
makes such relevant outputs available to the participating countries.
104. The most likely risk to the sustainability of the Project would be caused by financial
hardships, precipitated by the vulnerability of the national economies to downturns in the global
economy. Not only is this likely to affect the ability of governments to sustain their respective
counterpart contributions during the project's implementation, but it is also likely to impair their
ability to assume an increased financial burden, on completion of the GEF intervention. Further, it
is feared that an exacerbation of unemployment and poverty will weaken the commitment of the
public to change. Political changes and upheavals are also a risk that can affect commitment to the
project. The various project components will aim to significantly reduce these risks by heightening
awareness of IWCAM and sustainable development needs at the policy-making level, increasing
awareness within the electorate and all public and private sectors, demonstrating the real benefits
and value of resource management, and establishing a more linked, coordinated and integrated
approach to management of watersheds and their associated coastal areas.
105. Legislative and policy reform at the national level is intended to underpin project objectives
and IWCAM sustainability at the regional level. The activities and outputs to achieve such reform
are expected to capture not only IWCAM concepts but also international and regional
environmental and sustainable development agreements such as the Convention on Biological
Diversity (CBD), Cartagena Convention, etc. This legislative and policy reform, coupled to the
awareness and training component, should institutionalise the working practices and mechanisms
for IWCAM throughout the region. Regional networking and the evolution of regional institutional
linkages are intended to provide mainstreaming for IWCAM strategies and mechanisms throughout
the countries. It is intended that the development of measurable indicators for the impact of
IWCAM reforms, along with indicators of biodiversity and natural resource status and decline or
improvement will provide a strong incentive for such policy reforms.
106. Project sustainability is inevitably dependent on the sustainability and stability of the
executing agency(s) managing the project. In the case of this project there are two co-executing
agencies, the Secretariat for the Cartagena Convention (established 1981) and the Caribbean
Environmental Health Institute (CEHI, established 1989). Both of these agencies are well-
established organisations with many years of experience and work within the region. Their
continuing presence in the region and the institutionalisation of IWCAM principles and practices
into their permanent programmes is expected to provide a high degree of regional programmatic
and institutional sustainability. Additionally, insofar as IWCAM concepts and requirements are
already established within the Cartagena Convention, contracting parties will be able to use the
lessons learnt to assist them in national implementation of the Convention and its protocols and
enabling more ratifications of these regional agreements.
107. The relative paucity to date of ratifications of the LBS protocol by the Caribbean states
represents a long-term risk to successful application of IWCAM in the region. To address this risk,
45
the project includes activities aimed at promoting awareness and ratification of the LBS protocol as
well as other pertinent global and regional agreements such as the Convention on Biological
Diversity, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Convention to Combat
Desertification and others.
108. One major contribution to both project sustainability and the transferable sustainability of
the GEF contribution must be the demonstration projects and their replicability throughout and
beyond the region. One of the criteria for demonstration project funding has been a clear
definition, within the demonstration project proposal, of the potential for replicability of the lessons
and best practices developed and evolved from the demonstration. Only those projects that are able
to identify a real potential for replication have been selected and the mechanisms for the transfer of
lessons and the replication of mitigation and barrier removal activities for IWCAM will be
developed through the relevant project components and activities.
GEF ELIGIBILITY
109. The GEF Operational Strategy recognises the special conditions and needs of Small Island
Developing States (SIDS). Specifically, the Strategy states the need for "more integrated
approaches to land and water management as a mechanism to address threats to their water
resources", that "integrated freshwater basin-coastal area management is essential for a
sustainable future for these island states," and that "this approach can produce benefits in other
GEF focal areas, especially biodiversity and climate change." Since then, the GEF has added a
new Land Degradation focal area. Clearly IWCAM will deliver benefits in this area as well.
110. All 13 countries are eligible for GEF assistance under paragraph 9b of the Instrument for the
Restructured GEF. GEF's Operational Programme No. 9 "Integrated Land and Water Multiple
Focal Area" states that "the goal is to help groups of countries utilise the full range of technical,
economic, financial, regulatory and institutional measures needed to operationalise the sustainable
development strategies for international waters (para. 9.2)". Further, this OP lists as an expected
outcome "the reduction of stress to the international waters environment in selected parts of all 5
development regions across the globe through participating countries making change sin their
sectoral policies, making critical investments, developing necessary programmes and collaborating
jointly in implementing water resources protection measures (para 9.10)".
111. The proposed project will help the riparian countries to overcome institutional and other
barriers to collaboration. The proposed project coordinates among implementing agencies, regional
development banks, countries, and other stakeholders, and generates programmatic benefits for the
global environment that would not otherwise be achievable. GEF funds will support
implementation of demonstration projects and the finalisation of the regional hotspots analysis.
This process will involve international donors, national and local governmental institutions,
industries, and other key stakeholders that have important actions to take in restoring and protecting
the environment
112. The proposal is also consistent with the recent International Waters Focal Area - Strategic
Priorities in Support of WSSD Outcomes for FY 2003-2006: IW 3 Undertake Innovative
Demonstrations for Reducing Contaminants and Addressing Water Scarcity.
46
STAKEHOLDER PARTICIPATION
113. The primary stakeholders in this Project include:
· Public Sector: ministries responsible for water resources (utilities); environment;
tourism; planning; agriculture (forestry, fisheries); industry; community development;
education; and local government authorities
· Private Sector: national and regional organisations representing: farmers; fisherfolk;
manufacturers/industrialists; hotel owners/managers; tour operators; cruise line
companies; yachtsmen; and dive operators;
· Non-governmental Organisations: national trusts; conservation associations; women's
organisations; community-based organisations (CBOs);
· Scientific community: researchers; sociologists; medical practitioners; environmental
managers; engineers (water, civil, environmental); biologists; teachers; curriculum
specialists; media practitioners; and
· Others,
The Public Involvement plan will be developed in time for the CEO endorsement; the plan
summary is attached in Annex E.
114. As noted earlier, the implementation of the Project will be facilitated through a network of
these stakeholders at the national and regional level. The challenge however will be to sustain the
involvement of these stakeholders as an integral part of the IWCAM process. Fortunately, models
of effective stakeholder participation abound in nearly all of the participating countries, which
could easily be adopted/adapted to the IWCAM needs. Several regional organisations such as
CAST, CTO and CHA are also alive to the benefits of effective stakeholder participation.
Stakeholder involvement is recognised to be an integral requirement for each project component. In
endorsing the project document, the countries of the region recognise and embrace the need for this
direct involvement by all stakeholders in the IWCAM process.
PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION & INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK
115. The Project will be jointly implemented by UNDP and UNEP. Recognising the comparative
advantages of both agencies, namely the country presence of UNDP and the linkages between
project activities and UNDP's country assistance strategies; and the relationship between project
activities and UNEP's Regional Seas Programme and International Environmental Conventions, the
project will take advantage of the opportunities for synergy and complementarity. UNEP will serve
as the lead Implementing Agency. While UNDP's specific expertise and value vis-à-vis its regional
and country offices will provide important support, especially to the Demonstration Projects.
Specifically, UNEP will serve as IA for Components 2, 3, 4 and 5 while UNDP will implement
Component 1 (the Demonstration Projects). The resultant financial allocation for each agency is
shown in Table 7.
47
TABLE 7:
GEF FUNDING PER IMPLEMENTATION AGENCY
(not including the support costs)
COMPONENT AND ACTIVITIES
UNDP
UNEP
GEF
Co-Funds
1. Demonstration, Capture and Transfer
of Best Practices
$5,474,970
2. Development and Monitoring of
IWCAM Impact Indicators
$3,154,800
3. Policy, Legislation and Institutional
Reforms
$585,350
4. Regional and National Capacity
Building and Sustainability
$804,600
5. Regional Project Management and
Coordination
$2,725,700
TOTALS
$5,474,970
$7,270,450
116. The project will be co-executed by the Secretariat to the Cartagena Convention and CEHI
with the Secretariat assuming the role of lead Executing Agency. The proposed execution
arrangements take advantage of the recognised expertise of CEHI in the field of freshwater
resource management; and the Secretariat to the Cartagena Convention in matters related to the
marine and coastal environment and in working in a multi-lingual environment. Both agencies
have long established relationships with the countries of the region (Annex H). Sustainability of
project benefits at the regional level will be enhanced through these arrangements.
117. At the national level, each participating country will designate a National Focal Point for the
project and will further establish National Intersectoral Committee (NIC). The function of this
Committee will be to capture the concepts of IWCAM and the project objectives at the national
level and to ensure complimentary activities between national strategies and polices and the
IWCAM initiative. The National Focal Point will sit on this NIC, and will act as the country's
representative to the Project Steering Committee. Where a country has an approved Demonstration
Project, the NFP will also act as the Chair of that Demonstration Project(s) Steering Group. This
will firmly establish the NFP as the key focal point for interactions with the Project Co-ordination
Unit.
118. The Project Steering Committee will meet annually to monitor progress in project
execution, to provide strategic and policy guidance, and to review and approve annual work plans
and budgets. The Committee will be chaired by a national representative (on a rotational basis) and
will consist of the national focal points from all participating countries and representatives of the
two GEF Implementing Agencies Both the CARICOM Secretariat and OAS will participate as
observers, and the Project Coordination Unit will provide the Secretariat to the Committee. The
Steering Committee may decide, in its absolute discretion, to vary this membership through the
addition of representatives from other IGOs, NGOs, and the private sector, particularly significant
co-financiers.
119. The project, through the PCU and through the approval of the Steering Committee, will
adopt a Regional Technical Advisory Group (R-TAG). The R-Tag will advise the Steering
48
Committee and the PCU on IWCAM technical issues within the region. Each country will nominate
a suitable technical representative to this R-Tag for adoption by the Steering Committee.
120. Regional co-ordination and collaboration will be facilitated through a Regional Project Co-
ordination Unit (PCU), consisting of appropriate professional and support staff, that will also
provide technical assistance and advice to the participating countries. The staff of this team may be
augmented through secondment of national staff to the project. The IWCAM Project Coordination
Unit will be established and operated out of CEHI headquarters in St. Lucia. Full details of
responsibilities along with the schematic interpretation of the Project Implementation and
Management arrangements can be found in Annex G.
INCREMENTAL COSTS & PROJECT FINANCING
121. Table 8 presents incremental costs and co-financing by component base on the more
detailed analysis presented in Annex A. As noted in Annex A, there are global environmental
benefits accrued to this project as well as national and regional benefits. Direct environmental
benefits are obtained as a result of the demonstration project activities. In particular, greater and
sustainable benefits are to be derived from the lessons learnt in the demonstrations and the legal,
policy, and institutional reforms as well as education and awareness that will arise from the project.
122. This project has leveraged approximately US$ 98 million from governments and regional
bodies to co-finance the sustainable management and protection of global significant island
(terrestrial and marine) biodiversity within the Caribbean, along with the mitigation of
transboundary threats including land-based sources of pollution and over-extraction of
transboundary resources such as fisheries. This financing, supported by GEF incremental
assistance, will develop the necessary national and regional support structures for, and realign
national and regional policy, legislation and attitudes to IWCAM.
TABLE 8: INCREMENTAL COST ANALYSIS AND PROJECT FINANCING BY
COMPONENT
IWCAM PROJECT ICA RESULTS BY COMPONENT
COMPONENT TITLE
BASELINE INCREMENT
GEF
CO-FUNDING
1. Demonstration, Capture and
Transfer of Best Practices
$44,317,989
$132,092,923 $5,474,970
$82,299,964
2. Development Of IWCAM
Process, Stress Reduction and
Environmental Status Indicators
$29,944,442
$37,203,242 $3,154,800
$4,104,000
3. Policy, Legislation and
Institutional Reform
$103,303,160
$104,530,010
$585,350
$641,500
4. Regional and National Capacity
Building and Sustainability
$771,049,765
$782,841,394
$804,600
$10,987,029
5. Regional Project Management
and Coordination
$5,598,947
$8,561,647 $2,725,700
$237,000
Support Costs
$637,271
TOTALS $954,214,303 $1,065,866,487 $13,382,691
$98,269,493
49
MONITORING & EVALUATION
123. Monitoring and Evaluation include a series of linked activities, including a complete Project
Document, Project Implementation Review (PIR), Tripartite Reviews, Annual and Quarterly
Project Reports (and thence to the GEF Project Implementation Review Process), Work Plan, and
independent mid-term and final project Evaluations (see Table 9). Monitoring and evaluation
begins with preparation of the Project Document, complete with logical framework matrix
(LogFrame) developed according to standard M&E procedures, including clear indicators of
implementation progress and means of verification.
124. Project objectives, outputs and emerging issues will be regularly reviewed and evaluated
annually by the PSC. Reporting (annual and quarterly) will be done in accordance with UNDP,
UNEP and GEF rules and regulations. The annual programme/project report (APR) is designed to
obtain the independent views of the main stakeholders of a project on its relevance, performance
and the likelihood of its success. The APR form has two parts. Part I asks for a numerical rating of
project relevance and performance as well as an overall rating of the project. Part II asks for a
textual assessment of the project, focusing on major achievements, early evidence of success, issues
and problems, recommendations and lessons learned. The APR will be prepared by the Project
Manager, after consultation with the relevant Stakeholders, and will be submitted to UNDP and
UNEP for approval. Quarterly progress reports will be prepared using the same procedures. The
Stakeholder review will focus on the logical framework matrix and the performance indicators, and
stakeholders will be encouraged to submit any views and concerns to the PPR.
125. The project will be subject to the various evaluation and review mechanisms of the UNDP
and UNEP, including, the Tri-Partite Review (TPR), and an external Evaluation and Final Report
prior to termination of the Project. The project will also participate in the annual Project
Implementation Review (PIR) of the GEF. The PIR is mandatory for all GEF projects that have
been under implementation for at least a year at the time that the exercise is conducted. Particular
emphasis will be given to emerging GEF policy with regard to monitoring and evaluation in the
context of GEF IW projects. Relevant Process Indicators, Stress Reduction Indicators, and
Environmental Status Indicators will be developed through a central component of the project, and
that will serve to inform the M&E process as well as being adopted by the participating countries as
tools for long-term monitoring of IWCAM objectives. One particularly important Process Indicator
will be the level of ratification by participating countries to various pertinent regional and
international MEAs by the end of the project. In particular, ratification of the LBS Protocol
associated with the Cartagena Convention will be considered a critical Process Indicator for
effective project sustainability. Details regarding the content of each of the above-mentioned
reports are contained in the M&E information kit available through UNDP/GEF.
126. During the early stages of the project, the PCU will identify the relevant Process Indicators
(PIs), Stress Reduction Indicators (SRIs) and Environmental Status Indicators (ESIs) relevant to the
project. These indicators will be reviewed, as part of the initial monitoring and evaluation exercise
and upon their adoption will become a basis for the ongoing IWCAM monitoring and evaluation
process. The Logframe Analysis incorporated into the Project Brief and this Project Document shall
be used in significant measure to assist in the identification of the relevant indicators.
127. It is expected that as with many other GEF IW projects, many of the indicators to be
employed during the life of the project will be PIs. These would include, inter alia, such indicators
as the establishment and successful functioning of a Partnership Forum to develop IWCAM
50
sustainability in the region, a high level of ratification of the LBS protocol (at least 75% of
participating countries by the end of the project) and other IWCAM-related IEAs, widespread
policy and legislative reform in line with IWCAM objectives, the establishment and effective
functioning of an Inter-Ministerial Steering Committee linked to national Intersectoral Committees
for IWCAM.
128. SRIs might include, inter alia, the establishment of more effective sewage treatment
facilities, implementation of policy and legislation for designating land-use zoning, improved water
resource storage and deliver with resulting positive environmental, economic and social benefits for
the participating countries, explicit measures for the protection of watershed catchment areas, etc,
129. While ESIs are likely to become more apparent after the life of the GEF project, there are
likely to be some ESIs that are likely to be realized during implementation. These ESIs would
include, inter alia, measurable improvements in coastal and watershed water quality, reductions in
water loss and leakage, etc. The development of indicators is part of the IWCAM monitoring
process.
130. In addition to the monitoring and evaluation described above, independent monitoring of the
project will be undertaken through contract, using a balanced group of experts selected by UNEP
and UNDP. The extensive experience of UNEP and UNDP in monitoring large regional projects
will be drawn upon to ensure that the project activities are carefully documented. There will be two
evaluation periods, one at mid-term and another at the end of the Project. The mid-point review will
focus on relevance, performance (effectiveness, efficiency and timeliness), issues requiring
decisions and actions and initial lessons learned about project design, implementation and
management. The final evaluation will focus on similar issues as the mid-term evaluation but will
also look at early signs of potential impact and sustainability of results, including the contribution
to capacity development and the achievement of global environmental goals. Recommendations on
follow-up activities will also be provided.
131. In addition to the standard UNDP, UNEP and GEF procedures outlined above, the project
will benefit from annual Project Steering Committee Meetings (PSC). The PSC is the primary
policy-making body for the IWCAM project. The Project Manager will schedule and report on the
Steering Committee Meetings. Meetings can also be organized ad hoc at the request of a majority
of the participating countries. The Steering Committee will approve the final results of such
meetings.
132. In view of the critical importance and technical nature of the Demonstration Projects,
specific evaluation and advisory functions will be undertaken to review their progress and to assess
indications of their success. UNDP, through its country offices, will take a lead role in overseeing
progress and evaluating delivery of best practices and lessons from these all-important
Demonstration Projects. A technical and objective review of all of the demonstration projects will
be undertaken on an annual basis. The review will report back to the Project Steering Committee
through the Executing and Implementing Agencies, and will cover such areas as progress,
scheduling (budget and workplan), technological advances, and the need for improvements and
additions. The principal objective of this Demonstration Project appraisal will be to ensure that the
Projects are on schedule and will deliver the expected outputs and outcomes, and to advise on
action that should be taken to assist in achieving this objective. Explanations will be given on the
manner in which the monitoring and evaluation results will be used to adjust the implementation of
a Demonstration Project (where necessary) and to replicate the results throughout the Caribbean
region.
51
133. Provisions have been made within the workplan and budget to undertake post-project
evaluation (with a sum of co-funding identified for that purpose). Such post-project evaluation is
not a standard requirement by GEF in view of difficulties of budgeting for activities beyond the
project lifetime (The requirement to audit and close the project accounts at the end of the project
life-time). In this instance, the need has been recognised and the level of funding identified, but the
actual source of funding has yet to be confirmed. The PCU and project management team should
recognise the need to capture this funding, through partnerships with NGOs, etc, and to confirm its
availability before the final year of the project.
TABLE 9:
M&E ACTIVITIES, TIME-FRAMES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Activity Responsibilities
Timeframes
1. Drafting Project Planning UNDP, UNEP staff and During project design stage
Documents: Prodoc,
consultants and other
LogFrame (including
pertinent stakeholders
indicators), M&E Plan
2. M&E Plan
UNDP,
UNEP,
project During project design stage
development specialists
3. Work Plan
Project Manager, with UNEP Annually (first year:
and UNDP
inception report)
4. Quarterly Operational UNEP and PPR
Quarterly
Reports (QORs)
5. Annual Programme/
The Steering Committee, Annually
Project Reports (APRs)
working closely with UNEP
and the Project Manager in
consultation with Project
stakeholders
6. Tripartite Review (TPR)
Governments,
UNDP, Annually
UNEP, project team,
beneficiaries and other
stakeholders
7. Project Implementation UNDP, UNEP, project team, Annually, between June and
Review (PIR)
GEF's M&E team
September
8. Mid-term and Final UNDP, UNEP, project team, At the mid-point and end of
evaluations
independent evaluators
project implementation.
9. Terminal Report
UNDP and UNEP, Project At least one month before the
Manager
end of the project
REPLICATION
134. The element of replication is critical to the entire concept of this project. The Demonstration
Projects all have a replication approach defined within their text although it is recognised that there
will need to be some specific mechanisms developed both within the demonstrations and within the
overall project. In this respect, a significant output from Component 1 will be the development of
replication mechanisms in order to transfer best lessons and practices between Demonstration
Projects, between participating countries, and between partnerships on a regional and global level.
52
135. Furthermore, a major contribution of the project would be its replicability for SIDs in other
locations in the world. Virtually all SIDs share the same problems of environmental stresses,
limited natural resources in the face of increasing resource demands, and limited financial and
capacity resources to varying degrees. Consequently, the IWCAM project will evolve partnerships
through the SIDS global network to capture and to disseminate lessons and best practices, which
are applicable to all SIDS.
LIST OF ANNEXES & APPENDICES
APPENDIX 1: THE IWCAM DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS
REQUIRED ANNEXES
Annex A Incremental Cost Analysis
Annex B Logical Framework Analysis
Annex C STAP Roster Technical Review and Response
OPTIONAL ANNEXES
Annex D Root Cause Analysis
Annex E Public Involvement Plan Summary
Annex F Reference Documents
Annex G Implementation Arrangements and Project Management
Annex H Profile of Executing Agencies
Annex I
List of IWCAM-related, GEF supported or funded initiatives within the Caribbean
Annex J Endorsement Letter from NFPs and Co-Financing letters. (separate file)
53