A new agreement was signed yesterday between the European Union and the United Nations Environmental Program. This document means a step further into an already existing partnership that over the past three years has allowed the implementation of more than 50 different projects wolrd-wide, with a value of 50 million euros (69 million US$).
This agreement establishes bases and guidelines for funding and cooperation between the two organizations up to 2013, and identifies areas for joint activities and strengthens links shared by both parts. It also reflects the similarities between EU's strategies on smart sustainable development and UNEP's work in that same way. The new Strategic Cooperation Agreement will improve the coordination, and thus the effectiveness of the actions taken by the signatories.
The precise projects in which the new funds will be invested are still to be discussed, but they will range from biodiversity to chemical pollution. Cooperation between UNEP and EU is not new at all: EU has funded several Multi-lateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) sponsored by the UNEP in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean, and a multi-million dollar project to assist the restoration of Mau forest in Kenya.
- David Nebreda
SOURCE: EUROPA Press Releases
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