Research Assistant for SGLG Data on Finance

Country:   PHILIPPINES

Description of the Assignment:  

Since 2014, the United Nations Development Program through its Biodiversity Finance Initiative (BIOFIN) Project, has been supporting the Philippine Government in articulating the financial resources it needs to maintain a healthy biodiversity portfolio in-country. BIOFIN in collaboration with Department of Natural Resources Biodiversity Management Bureau has conducted the following assessments: 1) Policy and Institutional Review (PIR); 2) Public and Private Biodiversity Expenditure Review (PPBER); 3) Assessment of financial needs (cost and gap analysis of implementing Philippine Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (PBSAP)). These assessments significantly contributed to the development of a Biodiversity Finance Plan.

Based on insights gained from the results of the three BIOFIN assessments, this Plan acknowledges the importance of tapping additional financing to support the biodiversity agenda of the Philippines, mainly through the Philippine Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (PBSAP 2028-2040). This Plan transcends the focus on generating additional resources and identifies a range of “finance solutions” that leverage finance, fiscal and economic tools and strategies to improve the outcome of biodiversity objectives in the country. Financing solutions include a range of transformative actions: generating more financing to fund the PBSAP or associated planning documents; appropriate attribution of biodiversity expenditures in the budget; attaining cost effective budget execution by eradicating overlaps in biodiversity functions; eradicating expenditures that continue to or aggravate dissipation of biodiversity resources; and paving the groundwork for a responsive policy environment through greater awareness on biodiversity and biodiversity financing and enhancing institutional support towards monitoring of PBSAP.

By virtue of RA 11292 or the Seal of Good Local Governance (SGLG) Act, the Seal is an institutionalized award, incentive, honor and recognition-based program that aims to boost local government units’ (LGUs) commitment to continuously progress and improve their performance along 10 governance areas. One of these governance areas is Environmental Management of which there are 3 indicators – solid waste management, wetlands conservation and green and open spaces. A cash incentive of PhP7M is given to winning cities and PhP5M to winning municipalities. There are 81 provinces, 145 cities and 1,489 municipalities in the Philippines. This finance solution encourages LGUs to invest in these indicators and their efficient implementation.

Period of assignment/services (if applicable):  50 days spread over 6 months

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