1 Introduction
Purpose
The UNEP Capacity Building and Institutional Development Programme for Environmental Management in Afghanistan was officially launched by UNEP and the European Commission in Kabul on the 28th of October 2003. The programme was requested by the Government of Afghanistan as a key follow-up activity to the UNEP report “Afghanistan Post-Conflict Environmental Assessment” published in January 2003. The purpose of the programme is to provide an integrated package of capacity building activities that will contribute to the development of a stand-alone and self-sufficient National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA) with the required technical and legal capacity to implement the environmental mandate of the Government. The programme covers five main pillars:
- Pillar 1: Environmental institutions and coordination
- Pillar 2: Environment law and policy
- Pillar 3: Environmental impact assessment
- Pillar 4: Environmental information and education
- Pillar 5: Community-based natural resource management
The original programme was to be implemented during the period October 2003 to December 2006. Based on a combination of early successes and expanding needs, an extension has been requested by NEPA for UNEP to continue until 2008. Support and funding for the programme has been provided by the European Commission, the Government of Finland and the Global Environment Facility (GEF). This report outlines the progress that was made during the 2003-2005 period and provides an overview of the focus areas for 2006.