PAGE Countries

In recent years, Brazil has benefitted from significant economic growth, in large part due to a surge in agricultural production. Mato Grosso, its third largest state, has been at the epicenter of this transformation, having become one of the country’s largest producer of beef, soy and cotton. Nevertheless, despite the economic benefits that growth of the agriculture sector have generated in Mato Grosso, it has not benefitted everyone equally and it has caused a lot of pressure on natural resources. Recognizing the importance of achieving inclusive sustainable growth, Mato Grosso has opted for tackling these challenges head on, notably through the promotion of new economic activities and technologies, and efforts to rehabilitate its natural resource base. 

The State government has committed to and invested in the transformation of the current development model into one that causes less environmental damage and increases social equity. In 2015, it launched the strategy – Produce, Conserve and Include (PCI), with the objective to increase production, conserve natural resources such as forests and promote the inclusion of families in rural settlements as well as traditional and vulnerable communities. This strategy complements various national level planning instruments advancing sustainable development across Brazil, including the Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Deforestation in the Amazon, the National Climate Change Policy (NCCP), and the Low Carbon Agriculture Plan, a sectoral plan of the NCCP.

The government of the state of Mato Grosso has determined that the key priority for PAGE support is the development of a green economy model with an emphasis on the generation of green employment opportunities and poverty eradication as well as the identification and development of opportunities and capacities in different sectors of sustainable technology.

In Mato Grosso, PAGE activities contribute to the achievement of SDG 1 (No Poverty), SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), SDG 15 (Life on Land) and SDG 17 (Partnership for the Goals).

13-18 October 2019, Turin, Italy - The International Training Centre of the International Labour Organization (ITCILO) held its 3rd Global Academy on the Green Economy. The six-day event gathered 105 participants from government ministries, civil society organizations, trade unions, employers’ organizations, business, and research institutes, among others. Following the successful implementation of the first and second editions of the Academy in 2014 and 2016, this year's Academy boosted delivery and knowledge sharing across partner countries and organizations.

This year, the Chinese delegates participating the Academy are from Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE), Policy Research Center for Environment and Economy (PRCEE) of MEE, Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MoHRSS) and Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).

In the opening speech, Mr. Yanguo Liu, Director of ITCILO, pointed out five key focuses for the transition to an Inclusive Green Economy: green economy and sustainable development policy tools, green jobs and just transitions, green industrial development, green economy financing, and skills development for these aspects.

At an activity during the opening panel, Ms. Yunfang Hu from MEE shared with the participants the development of solar energy in China. By the end of 2018, the total installed capacity of photovoltaic (PV) in China reached 174 GW, with an increase of 44.26 GW, ranking first in the world in both total and increase. Also in 2018, the photovoltaic power generation in China is 177.5 TWh, ranking first in the world.

In the plenary session 1, Greening with Jobs: A Just Transition to Environmental Sustainability, Ms. Bin Liang from MoHRSS shared an example of the green transition of steel and iron industry in China. To ensure a just transition for all and leave no one behind, three major actions were taken targeting the employees who lost their job due to the transition. The first action was to re-allocate them internally within the group. Secondly, those who did not possess the necessary skills to switch to a new job outside the group can receive specific trainings according to their needs. Thirdly, those who have reached a certain level of seniority can go through an early retirement program with secured pensions.

In the elective session 3.2, Resource Efficiency and Circular Economy Policies, Mr. Yong Wang from PRCEE shared PAGE China’s work in greening industrial parks in Jiangsu Province. The assessment concludes that achievements in environmental protection have contributed strongly to the progress of green transition. Despite the progress, the dependence on chemical industry has resulted in an undesirable energy structure and pollution. This calls for special attention to the green transition of chemical industrial parks.

In the elective session 3.3, Green Technology Promotion through Policy Instruments, Mr. Haoming Ouyang from MIIT gave a presentation on the latest progress of industrial green development in China. With the enhanced awareness of Ecological Civilization Construction, the overarching national policy on green development in China, the industrial structure and energy consumption mix have been optimized. Focuses include the improvement in industrial energy, water and resource efficiency, the promotion of industrial clean production and green manufacturing system, as well as the facilitation of international cooperation.

In addition, UNIDO colleague, Mr. Abu Saieed, used evidence from 18 Chinese provinces to illustrate the Green Industry Progress (GIPro) in China. The GIPro index shows some provinces achieved overall progress in their transition towards green industrialization over the period 2006-2015, yet some experienced regress. This report offers policy recommendations pinpointing the indicators that need to be improved, e.g. green industrial employment or hazardous waste intensity.

In the last plenary session, Financing for Inclusive Green Economies, Mr. Yong Wang from PRCEE shared China’s breakthrough in establishing the green financial system, including the expansion of market size of green financial products and the establishment of pilot zones. In order to further scale up the financing system, it is necessary to tailor the green finance development plan to local conditions, unify the standards of green finance and enhance environmental information transparency through regulating environmental information disclosure of listed companies.

Prior to the official start of the Academy, PAGE organized a whole-day workshop for national coordinators on 13 Oct. This session opened space to develop peer-to-peer cooperation on the theme of their choice, which incentivized the national coordinators to take the first steps towards further discussions as well as a broader exchange of information.

The PAGE China coordinator, Mr. Chengchen Qian, shared experience of South-South and Triangular Cooperation between China and Kyrgyzstan. The latter is specially interested in the textile industry along the value chain in China. And it has hence planed a tentative study tour to China in December to attend the International Forum on Green Development in Chengdu. Inspired by this successful story, Kazakhstan also saw the potential and expressed their interest, considering their focus on the industrial energy efficiency.

This third edition of the Academy has not only promoted but also solidified the delivery, action and  knowledge  sharing  in the  transition  to environmentally  sustainable  and  socially  inclusive  economies across  countries  and organizations involved. At the end of the Academy, participants have gained in-depth understanding of suitable approaches and tested tools practices that would contribute to achieving long term impacts in the framework of national sustainable development strategies.

These specifically concern formulating and implementing green economy policies, as well as strategies at national level in key economic sectors, which help keeping up with new orientations of markets,  government  policies  and  social  aspirations. These have no doubt increased the participants’ capacity to identify and build on opportunities for the promotion of a socially inclusive green economy.

In recent years, PAGE partner agencies have provided diverse forms of support for green economy action, including assisting in the development of the Environmental Economy Strategy, a policy toolbox to help achieve national climate change and natural resources objectives.

Against this backdrop, an initial mission to Guatemala took place in September 2018, where PAGE met with national counterparts to set the objectives and parameters for its work in the country. Capitalizing on this opportunity, PAGE was also presented to Members of Parliament, regional authorities, the private sector and academia.

To begin its engagement, PAGE has:
• Began consultations with the Ministry of Public Finance
• Engaged with the UN Resident Coordinator as well as SIDA and GIZ

In recent years, India has been shifting from select initiatives in areas such as green jobs to embracing a larger scale and more integrated economy-wide approaches, including areas like circular economy and waste-to-wealth.

In this context, PAGE kicked off in India with an Inception Workshop, held in November 2018, convening national counterparts and other green economy stakeholders.

To begin its programme of work in India, PAGE has initiated work on:

• A stocktaking study to define priorities for PAGE’s engagement
• A national-level workshop and consultation on inclusive green economy priorities
• Planning of state-level stakeholder consultations in several regions to capture different perspectives on inclusive green economy opportunities and challenges

PAGE’s work in India will build upon:

• An existing UN Discussion Paper on circular economy in India, prepared by the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office

The Republic of Kazakhstan joined PAGE in 2018 with the overall objective of achieving the ambitious targets set out in its National Development Strategy Kazakhstan 2050 and its Green Economy Concept, which serves as an IGE roadmap for the country and includes several ambitious targets, such as sourcing 50% of energy from renewables by 2050 and as much as 30% by 2030.

At the sectoral level, Kazakhstan aspires to become a regional hub for green finance, which would provide further support for the investments in Kazakhstan’s green economy. More generally, Kazakhstan seeks to promote economic diversification through the green economy, also taking account of the benefits of achieving inclusive growth.

PAGE activities will kick-off with a scoping mission in early 2019 in a process that will be led nationally by the Ministry of Energy, with close engagement from the Ministries of Healthcare, Agriculture, Industry and Development and National Economy.

Since its independence in 1968, Mauritius has come a long way, transforming into an upper middle-income diversified economy benefitting from dynamic industrial, financial and tourism sectors as well as high levels of human development. However, increased economic activity has also had adverse effects on the environment. Significant threats such as marine and air pollution, coupled with the island’s vulnerability to climate change, underline the necessity for Mauritius to increase resource efficiency and the resiliency of its economy in order to build a sustainable and prosperous future.

 In order to tackle the environmental and social challenges it currently faces as well as achieve its ambition of becoming a high-income, sustainable and inclusive economy by 2030, the government has formulated an ambitious path forward, the Vision 2030 Development Model*, with key focus on addressing unemployment, alleviating poverty and promoting sustainable development. The government has also launched the Three Year Strategic Plan 2017-2020, “Rising to the Challenge of our Ambitions”, in June 2017, aiming to address these pressing challenges through targeted actions in various key growth sectors. In Mauritius’ Three Year Strategic Plan, green economy is mentioned as an approach for implementing low-carbon growth and renewable energy strategies in key sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing waste management and tourism.

Throughout this process, PAGE has worked with the Mauritian government as well as the private sector and civil society actors on a series of technical support programs and various green economy assessments. PAGE is notably supporting the implementation of the Three Year Strategic Plan, seeking to promote innovation, increase efficiency of public institutions and develop skills in the labor force towards the advancement of shared and environmentally sustainable growth in Mauritius.

PAGE activities in Mauritius are contributing to the achievement of: SDG 4 (Quality Education); SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure); SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production); SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals)

Located on the west coast of South America with more than 50% of its territory covered by forest, Peru is endowed with abundant natural resources, especially minerals, which serve as the backbone of the economy. Despite a slight slowdown in recent years, it has enjoyed strong economic growth since the turn of the century, allowing it to make significant strides in key development areas such as access to water and sanitation, access to energy and overall poverty reduction. Resource-driven growth has nevertheless led to environmental degradation and increasing pressure on natural capital, often resulting in the poorest segments of the population bearing the highest costs. Growing threats such as water and air pollution, soil erosion and deforestation all presented significant challenges that called for increased attention.[1]

In order to steer the country towards a development scenario reconciling economic development with social inclusiveness and environmental sustainability, Peru has embarked on a journey towards productivity-driven growth and increased resource efficiency. Building on commitments made on the international stage to sustainable development, climate action and biodiversity conservation among others, Peru has in recent years integrated such objectives in national planning efforts such as the Bicentennial Development Plan (adopted in 2011), rendering explicit and actionable its desire to turn sustainability concerns into drivers of government policy.

PAGE engagement in Peru started in 2013 with the overall aim of promoting the efficient use of resources, environmental quality, and green jobs creation in key sectors of the economy. PAGE has since supported the integration of green growth and related concepts into national planning, provided assistance with the formulation and implementation of national and sectoral green economy public policy proposals, and helped catalyze various capacity-building initiatives.

PAGE activities in Peru are notably contributing towards the achievement of SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure), SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities), SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 17 (Partnership for the Goals).

In the last couple of decades, South Africa has become one of the largest economies in Africa, benefiting from high levels of industrialization and abundant natural resources such as large mineral deposits[1]. In the process, the country has made considerable strides towards improving the well-being of its citizens, significantly lowering poverty rates and increasing access to public services. Nevertheless, while the economy is still expanding, economic growth has significantly slowed down in recent years and many social and environmental challenges remain. Indeed, South Africa still suffers from high albeit improved levels of inequality and unemployment, and the industrialization of the country alongside the increasing exploitation of natural resources has resulted in a large ecological footprint.

Having recognized the potential of green economy strategies, the South African government has embarked on a developmental path where environmental sustainability and social equity go hand in hand with economic prosperity. South Africa’s vision for a low-carbon, resource efficient and pro-employment future has been integrated in a number of national policy instruments such as the National Development Plan 2030 and the Green Economy Accord. South Africa has notably assumed a leadership position in its region towards addressing environmental challenges and implementing green economic policies.

The intention of PAGE in South Africa is to further strengthen cooperation, coordination and capabilities required to implement the country’s planned green economy transition. The PAGE programme’s three objectives in South Africa are: i) to contribute to better policy coordination, strengthen dialogue and help deepen collaboration in green economy policy, planning and implementation processes; ii) to identify enabling factors for selected green economy sectors with the intent of promoting sector reform; iii) to strengthen capabilities through enhanced green economy training, learning and knowledge sharing, including support for national learning institutions in South Africa.

PAGE activities in South Africa contribute to the achievement of SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure), SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions) and SDG 17 (Partnership for the Goals).