"INSPIRE - INFORM - ENABLE"
Welcome to the July edition of the PAGE Bulletin.
Read on to discover how Partner Countries have carried out the latest PAGE-supported activities for a just transition and inclusive green economic models which benefit the environment and the society worldwide. Every step counts towards the green transformation and to accelerate the SDGs.
- With thanks from the PAGE Team -
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FOSTERING LONG-TERM PROSPERITY & ECONOMIC GROWTH
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KAZAKHSTAN: SECTORAL DECARBONISATION STRATEGIES AND LOW CARBON TECHNOLOGIES BROUGHT FORWARD
The Foreign Investors' Council (FIC) held in Kazakhstan conducted its 34th plenary session on June 9, under the chairmanship of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. The event was attended by heads of major multinational companies and government agencies, and representatives of international organisations.
Kazakhstan's president emphasised the relevance of economy decarbonisation and the introduction of low-carbon technologies with further improvement of the investment climate and enhancement of investors' rights protection system as strategic goals of the country. Currently, 80% of all greenhouse gas emissions in Kazakhstan are associated with the production of energy from fossil fuels, so the modernisation of the energy industry is of crucial importance, according to Tokayev. Moreover, the head of state urged the adoption of systemic measures to address the risk of declining wheat yields and the availability of freshwater resources.
Kazakhstan efforts to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060 are drafted under a National Strategy, which covers large-scale economic, technological and social changes and must be adopted by the end of this year.
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INDIA: STREAMLINING SUSTAINABLE PUBLIC PROCUREMENT FOR THE AIR-CONDITIONING AND PAPER SECTORS
PAGE, led by UNEP, is supporting India's Ministry of Finance (MoF) to conduct market assessment studies for the set up of Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP) Criteria of products to be tendered in the writing and printing paper & green room air conditioners sectors. Industry experts and consultants delivered recommendations for identifying and prioritising products for the country's public procurement system during the national PAGE workshop in June.
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INDIA IDENTIFIES PRIORITY SECTORS OF PAGE SUPPORT TO THE COUNTRY
The Ministries of Rural Development; Railways; Labours and Employment; and Finance identified two new workstreams requiring PAGE support in India. The Indian Government and PAGE jointly plan implementation activities in the next two years.
Support will be given to the Ministry of Rural Development in developing a policy approach paper for integrating environmental sustainability and inclusive green economy principles in local-level planning. PAGE will also work with the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in the design of communication and outreach tools to support a behaviour change process in terms of lifestyles and consumption patterns among the Youth, in line with India's efforts on ‘Lifestyles for Environment’. The bilateral sessions followed the National Steering Committee meeting of PAGE India held on May 9.
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GUATEMALA OPENS DIALOGUE ON POLICIES AND CHALLENGES FOR A GREEN INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT
A National Dialogue on the progress and challenges of a circular economy and green industrial development in Guatemala was launched on 23 June. Panellists explored topics such as PAGE programmatic support for Guatemala focusing on environmental fiscal strategy, just transition, green jobs and recovery, and the related successful experiences conducted in Uruguay and Argentina.
Speakers also stressed that developing a national circular economy policy is the main country-level challenge. Daniel García from CIG emphasised that "The main gap at the national level is investment in research, development, and innovation. Less than 1% of GDP is invested in these areas".
Public finance and sectoral partnerships must be strengthened to ensure the provision of services provided by Guatemala, as well as the development of a national green, circular economy. The event was jointly organised by United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) for PAGE, the Ministry of Finance (MINFIN), Ministry of Economy (MINECO), and Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MARN).
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MATO GROSSO: ALIGNING LONG-TERM PLANS WITH SDGs
PAGE, led by UNDP, held a seminar on June 8 to present the Situational Diagnosis Aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Integrated Rapid Assessment (RIA) of the PPA 2022-2025 of the State of Mato Grosso. The reports correlate state indicators with the SDGs, identifying gaps and reflecting on the need for public policies that stimulate the acceleration of sustainable and inclusive development, which will be replicated in another 10 selected municipalities in Mato Grosso. The objective is to present and inform the municipalities of their classification forms; how their progress relates to the SDGs and how they can monitor the goals; and identify ways to accelerate sustainable development.
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MATO GROSSO: SEMINAR PROMOTES THE CREATION OF GREEN JOBS
An online seminar on "Green Jobs in Brazil – Conceptual and methodological aspects for the promotion of green jobs in Mato Grosso" was held by PAGE Mato Grosso led by ILO, on May 11. The seminar highlighted how the ILO's concept of green jobs outlines the current labour market in the Brazilian state, and the changes it could face due to the transition to IGE. Participants also discussed the feasibility of creating a Green Jobs Observatory in Mato Grosso and indicators to monitor the generation of green jobs.
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KYRGYZ REPUBLIC: GREEN ECONOMY MODELLING WORKSHOP FOR GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS
Capacity building on green economy modelling continued in June, through weekly online sessions with Andrea Bassi. The Ministry of Economy and Commerce selected 6 specialists via the open competition to serve as a core group of trainers to cascade the green economy modelling knowledge and skills to all interested planners. GIZ is funding the core costs, while PAGE KR is covering the translation costs of these trainings.
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URUGUAY: UP TO 90,000 GREEN JOBS CREATED FROM 2016-2021, ACCORDING TO PAGE REPORT
The Ministry of Labour and Social Security and PAGE Uruguay presented the final report of the Characterization of Green and Blue Jobs for Uruguay on June 15. The report illustrates the increase in the number of green jobs. The Minister of Labour and Social Security, Pablo Mieres, highlighted that "the world is moving toward accepting that we must build a model of sustainable development from an environmental point of view, and the world of work cannot be oblivious to it".
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SUSTAINABLE EXPO IN URUGUAY SHOWCASES AN INNOVATIVE RECYCLING APPLICATION
The first Sustainable Uruguay Expo organized by the Ministry of the Environment was held in June, covering topics such as circular economy, climate change, sustainable production and mobility. During the Expo, the Business Commitment to REcycling (CEMPRE) announced version 4.0 of the Where I Recycle APP, developed with PAGE Uruguay’s support. This APP educates users through accessing a geolocated map where they can identify recycling methods.
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ARGENTINA: PROSPECTS OF OVER 300,000 GREEN JOBS
PAGE developed the Green Employment Indicators in Argentina with the broad participation of the Unions, Government Institutions and Employers representatives. The new Strategy Paper discusses the prospects for job creation in the country's Social Economy segment, which is already responsible for 12% of the Argentinean labour market share. According to the study, Argentina has the potential to generate around 300,000 jobs in sectors such as recycling, maintenance of electronic devices, and future green urban spaces.
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LABOUR ADAPTATION PLANS FOR PRIORITY SECTORS IN ARGENTINA
Starting in July, PAGE is collaborating with the Argentinean Government on a Labour Adaptation Plan for three sectors: Building, Automotive Industry and Tourism. These plans aim to support the Government, Employers and Workers Organization in developing green and just-transition strategies for economic recovery.
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PAGE SUPPORTS PREPARATION OF ARGENTINEAN DELEGATES TO COP27
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UN Argentina (RCO), UNDP and PAGE supported the Argentinean Government on the realisation of the federal track meeting under the C40 Global Pact of Majors on Climate Change. The technical consultation was part of the country's preparation for the 2022 Conference of the Parties (COP27) of the UN Framework of Climate Change Convention (UNFCCC), to be held in Egypt on November 6-18.
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PERU: NEW EDITION OF "Mi Negocio Verde" TRAINING PROGRAM STARTS
The ILO, in alliance with the Ministry of Labour and Employment Promotion of Peru, initiated the third virtual edition of the Training of Trainers (FdF) in the "Mi Negocio Verde" Program on June 6. The objective is to help Micro and Small Businesses (MYPES) start a sustainable and innovative green business or bet on the greening of their businesses through the adoption of cleaner production processes that preserve the ecosystem and ensures social welfare.
The program has two courses: Course 1 - for entrepreneurs who want to start a green business; and Course 2 - for entrepreneurs who have a running business. The initiative aims to reach 300 MYPES. Participants include Andean-regional professionals from Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia and Peru. This program also contributes to three other PAGE Peru projects that engage "individuals and institutions representing public and private social partners, civil society groups and stakeholders in the country, who have acquired the necessary capacities to promote inclusive green economy at the regional, national and sectoral levels".
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STRENGTHENING ECOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS OF THE ECONOMY
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KYRGYZ REPUBLIC: KNOWLEDGE SHARING ON GREEN FINANCE INITIATIVES WITH MONGOLIA
A study visit by the Kyrgyz delegation to Mongolia was carried out in June under the partnership of PAGE and the Global Green Growth Institute. Participants gained first-hand knowledge from Mongolian peers about green finance initiative experiences focused on the best practices applied for the sectoral sustainable developments in Mongolia.
With the support from Green Recovery Funds, the shared experience raised opportunities for green financing in the Kyrgyz Republic and additional contributions to the green economy agenda. In order to effectively make the shift to sustainable banking and finance practices, banking institutions require an enabling national green finance framework, which should be in line with international practices and provide the right economic incentives to support investments in green nature and climate related projects.
Financing green economy is highlighted in the Kyrgyz Republic National Green Economy Program, adopted in 2019, to promote investment in environmental protection, clean technology and leverage tax credit and incentive mechanisms.
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INDONESIA: FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSES ACCELERATION OF GREEN ECONOMY AND RECOVERY
PAGE Indonesia National Coordinator participated at a national Focus Group Discussion (FGD) in Indonesia on the Implementation of Green Economy for Accelerating National Economic Recovery on June 20. The discussion was hosted by the National Resilience Institute of the Republic of Indonesia (Lembaga Pertahanan Nacional RI/Lemhanas RI).
Other participants included representatives of the Strategic Studies and Director of Studies on Economics and Natural Resources of Lemhanas RI, the Ministry of National Development Planning/BAPPENAS and Fiscal Policy Agency of the Ministry of Finance, as well as think-tanks and university experts, and the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KADIN).
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PAGE INDONESIA ASSESSES READINESS FOR GREEN JOBS CREATION
PAGE Indonesia led by the ILO organised a tripartite validation workshop for the ongoing policy readiness assessment on green jobs and a just transition in the energy sector. The objective of this event was to confirm the intermediate assessments' results and on filling the gaps, involve national stakeholders, as well as to identify future priority policy areas and the way forward. Dr. Cristina Martinez from ILO Regional Office Asia Pacific and Ms Michiko Miyamoto, the ILO Indonesia Country Director, delivered opening remarks to the workshop.
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UN DCO AND PAGE HOLD THIRD GLOBAL DIALOGUE WITH ECONOMISTS FROM THE UNRCOs, FOCUSING ON A FAIR AND GREEN ECONOMIC TRANSFORMATION
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On June 7, 2022, PAGE held the third dialogue of its series, "One UN for Accelerating a Fair and Green Economic Transformation". Following the second dialogue on sustainable finance, the third focused on unpacking the concept of Green Economic Transformation and how PAGE is supporting countries to accelerate this transition. The session also presented the joint capacity building development plan of PAGE – UN DCO targeting UN Resident Coordinator's Offices (UNRCOs), UN Country Teams (UNCTs) and key stakeholders.
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Key messages highlighted the unique position of PAGE, the UN system, and economists from the UNRCOs to support an economic transformation that aligns with Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development. There is great interest from UNCTs to receive PAGE support on economic transformation, especially on the use of green macroeconomic modelling for the CCA updates and the development of UNSDCFs. Going forward, there is scope for enhanced collaboration between PAGE and UN DCO – a related roadmap is currently under development.
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PAGE Green Transformation Economic Advisory Mechanism (Green TEAM) already provides deeper demand-driven support to 10 PAGE partner countries on economics and finance to accelerate action for People and Planet. The examples of ongoing collaboration in Morocco and Indonesia show a win-win situation. On the one hand PAGE brings multidisciplinary expertise and mobilises the 5 PAGE agencies to support UNRCO processes. On the other hand PAGE benefits from UNRCO economist expertise and the RCO convening power for the identification of national priorities for IGE to feed into PAGE work.
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KEEP IN TOUCH
Launched in 2013, the Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PAGE) seeks to put sustainability at the heart of economic policies and practices to advance the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. PAGE supports countries and regions in reframing economic policies and practices around sustainability to foster economic growth, create income and jobs, reduce poverty and inequality, and strengthen the ecological foundations of their economies.
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