The 57th meeting of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Council adopted a Work Program, comprising 48 projects and five programs, including Impact Programs on sustainable cities and on food systems, land use and restoration. The Council heard updates from representatives of the GEF Conventions on, among other issues, activities leading up to “super year 2020.”

The three-day meeting convened in Washington, DC, US, from 17-19 December 2019, at World Bank headquarters, bringing together representatives of governments, international organizations and civil society organizations (CSOs). It included the 27th meeting of the Council for the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF) and Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF), and was preceded by a consultation with CSOs on 16 December, which focused on the theme, ‘Illegal Wildlife Trade: A Civil Society Organization’s Perspective.’

With total resources amounting to USD 588.5 million, the Work Program includes the first three Non-Grant Instruments and the first dedicated GEF-funded initiative that will focus entirely on indigenous peoples. It will benefit 87 recipient countries, including 25 Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and 24 small island developing States (SIDS). Convening as the LDCF/SCCF Council, Members also approved the LDCF Work Program comprising nine projects, with total resources amounting to USD 59.95 million.

The Council heard updates by Rossana Silva Repetto, Executive Secretary, Minamata Convention on Mercury, Elizabeth Mrema, Acting Executive Secretary, Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and Basile van Havre, Co-Chair, Open-Ended Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework, among other representatives. The updates included information on the Conventions’ activities leading up to “super year 2020,” which GEF CEO and Chairperson Naoko Ishii highlighted as “a make or break year for humanity and for our planet.”

The GEF Council also discussed a proposed strategy for private sector engagement, identifying areas where the strategy could benefit from further clarification and greater detail. The GEF Secretariat will present a revised strategy to the 58th meeting of the Council in June 2020. An implementation plan is expected to be presented to the Council no later than December 2020.

During a pledging session, Belgium pledged EUR 15 million to the LDCF for new projects. [IISD RS Coverage of 57th GEF Council Meeting] [57th GEF Council Meeting Webpage]