Background and objectives
This joint strategy is a response to the increasing demand from local and national authorities to reduce urban environment degradation in the very urbanised Latin America and the Caribbean Region (LAC). In the Region, Environmental degradation affects primarily the poor and is characterised by vulnerability to environmental hazards and severe impacts on public health.
The strategy builds on experiences developed by both agencies in urban environment planning and management. It supports municipalities/cities in preparing urban-environmental assessments, based on the UNEP GEO Cities Programme and its methodology of assessing the state of the urban environment.
During the strategic planning phase, UNEP assumes the leadership in supporting the preparation of GEO City Reports to supply local governments, policy-makers and the public with reliable and up-to-date information about the urban environment. This provides a foundation for policy-making and helps to strengthen national and local capacities to in their work of continuously monitoring the state of the urban environment.
After the environmental assessment of the city the focus will be on improving urban planning and management processes by: selecting priority issues; identifying strategic options; formulating urban-environmental action plans to be included in municipal and physical planning; and implementing such plans. UN-HABITAT plays a central role in this activity using experience gained in more than 60 cities all over the world through the Localising Agenda 21 and Sustainable Cities Programmes. This experience will be made available to local and central governments in the region by providing technical support and tools needed to support urban environmental planning and management processes.
This strategy, which is shared by the two United Nations organizations responsible for urban development and the environment, is financed partly with resources from both agencies in the form of seed money that will be used to complement national and local funding. The strategy enhances cooperation between national and municipal governments. It also allows national ministries responsible for the urban sector and the environment to establish or strengthen their cooperation and joint efforts, thus providing better support to municipalities. The strategy is designed to provide an framework for regional funding mechanisms and for attracting bilateral and multilateral donors interested in supporting a concerted initiative to improve the urban environment in Latin America and the Caribbean that will help reducing urban poverty.
The strategy, which was agreed upon at the beginning of 2004, is currently being implemented in three countries: Brazil , Peru and Cuba. In each country three to four cities are supported and will serve as a basis for further replication. New countries are expected to join in the future.
Estrategia Ambiental-Urbana para América Latina y el Caribe PNUMA/UN-HABITAT
Estratégia Urbano-Ambiental para a América Latina e o Caribe PNUMA/UN-HABITAT (Versão 12-02-04)
Estrategia Urbano Ambiental para a América Latina y el y el Caribe UN-HABITAT - PNUMA
