United Nations Environment Management Group
Environment Management Group | |
| File:UN EMG logo.svg Logo of the United Nations Environment Management Group | |
| Abbreviation | UN EMG |
|---|---|
| Established | 1999[1] |
| Headquarters | Nairobi, Kenya |
Chair | Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP |
Parent organization | United Nations system |
| Website | unemg |
The United Nations Environment Management Group (UN EMG or simply EMG) is a United Nations system-wide coordination body on environment and human settlements, mandated to enhance inter‑agency cooperation on environmental and sustainability issues across the UN system.[2] It was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1999 pursuant to resolution 53/242 and became operational in 2001 as a platform for coordinated policy dialogue, joint planning and information exchange on environment and human settlements within the UN system.[1] The EMG brings together 53 UN organizations and 2 observing organizations, including UN specialized agencies, programmes, funds and the secretariats of Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs), to support coherent approaches to environmental objectives and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.[2]
History
Establishment and original mandate
The EMG was created following recommendations in the Secretary‑General's 1999 report on environment and human settlements (A/53/463), which proposed an environmental management group to strengthen system‑wide coordination on environment and human settlements.[1] General Assembly resolution 53/242 of July 1999 supported this proposal, endorsing the establishment of an environmental management group to enhance UN system‑wide inter‑agency coordination related to specific issues in the field of environment and human settlements.[1] The EMG's original terms of reference were developed through consultations in the Administrative Committee on Coordination (ACC) and its Inter‑Agency Committee on Sustainable Development (IACSD), and endorsed by ACC in 2000.[3]
Under its initial mandate, the EMG was entrusted to provide an effective, coordinated and flexible UN system response to important and newly emerging environmental and human settlements issues through an "issue management" approach, promote inter‑linkages and compatibility of different approaches, and add value to existing UN system‑wide inter‑agency cooperation. It was envisaged as a problem‑solving forum enabling UN bodies and partners to share information, consult on new initiatives and agree on joint priorities and roles, with reports feeding into relevant intergovernmental bodies to enhance policy coherence.[3]
Evolution of terms of reference
In 2004, the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) transmitted the EMG Terms of Reference (ToR) as an appendix to its eighth special session proceedings, creating a two‑tiered structure (senior‑level group and time‑bound issue management groups) and UNEP's role as secretariat.[3] The ToR were further updated at the 23rd Senior Officials Meeting (SOM23) in 2017. According to these ToR, the objectives of the EMG are to coordinate UN system responses to emerging issues of environmental and human settlement concern; promote inter-linkages and added value to existing UN system-wide inter-agency cooperation; and promote coordination and information exchange among its members regarding the environmental and social sustainability of UN operations, facilities, programmes, projects and policies.[2]
Reporting to UNEA and other bodies
The UNEP Governing Council's decision SS.VII/1 (2002) on international environmental governance recognized the EMG as the instrument needed at inter‑agency level to enhance policy coordination across UN environmental activities, and requested annual reporting to the Governing Council/Global Ministerial Environment Forum - now known as the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) - including on specific issues where the Council could make recommendations.[3] The EMG Chair, i.e., the UNEP Executive Director, regularly reports on EMG cooperation and achievements to UNEA and the Committee of Permanent Representatives (CPR), and through UNEP also to the UN General Assembly, in line with UN General Assembly resolution 58/209 which requested a report on EMG's work.[3]
Governance
EMG members
The EMG is currently composed of 53 specialized agencies, programmes and organs of the UN system, including MEA secretariats and Bretton Woods institutions. Two non-UN organizations have observer status.[1]
Senior Officials Meeting (SOM)
The EMG's main decision‑making body is the Senior Officials Meeting (SOM), composed of heads or senior officials of member UN entities and chaired by the UNEP Executive Director.[2] The SOM convenes at least once a year to identify specific issues to be addressed, review the annual report, and adopt the annual workplan, including the establishment of new Issue Management Groups (IMGs), Consultative Processes (CPs) and task teams.[2]
Technical focal points and members
Each member agency appoints a focal point at technical level to coordinate EMG‑related activities within the member.[2] Focal points are considered the Technical Segment of the SOM and meet at least twice per year. Non‑UN participants (e.g. civil society, international NGOs, scientific bodies and private sector representatives) may be invited to specific EMG meetings or IMGs, subject to UN rules and procedures and relevance to the issues under consideration.[2]
EMG Secretariat
The EMG Secretariat is hosted and administered by UNEP. The Secretariat serves the entire EMG network, providing organizational, substantive and reporting support to the SOM, the Technical Segment, the IMGs, CPs, task teams, and nexus dialogues.[2]
The Secretary of the EMG is the Head of UNEP’s New York Office, who oversees the Secretariat’s administrative arrangements and liaison with other New York‑based UN coordination mechanisms.[2]
Relationship to UNEA and other coordination mechanisms
The EMG directly reports on its work to the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) and indirectly, through UNEP, to the UN General Assembly. It also works in close coordination with the Chief Executives Board of the United Nations (CEB), the UN Sustainable Development Group (UNSDG), High‑Level Committee on Programmes (HLCP), High‑Level Committee on Management (HLCM) and thematic UN coalitions (e.g., UN‑Water, UN‑Energy, UN‑Oceans), particularly on cross‑cutting environmental and sustainability issues.[2]
Criticism
An independent evaluation of the EMG covering 2018-2022 concluded that the EMG's overall performance was "highly satisfactory" in terms of relevance, effectiveness and efficiency, with stakeholders widely recognizing its convening and coordinating mandate and its delivery on most planned outputs and outcomes. However, the independent evaluation also highlighted several critical issues.[4]
Headquarters focus and limited field connection
One key finding was that the EMG heavily focuses on coordination amongst UN entities at headquarters level, with limited impact on country-level or field‑level coordination.[4] While the EMG has the intention to promote a "One UN" approach and to strengthen its link to UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks (UNSDCFs), the independent evaluation found that practical influence at regional, sub‑regional and national levels remained modest and largely indirect.[4]
Links with other UN coordination bodies
The evaluation identified the need to further strengthen the EMG's functional links with UNSDG, HLCP, HLCM and sectoral programmes to ensure that EMG outputs feed more systematically into country‑level SDG implementation and UN system internal sustainability efforts.[4]
Resourcing, positioning and governance issues
The evaluation identified chronic under‑resourcing as a major constraint on EMG's ability to sustain activities, follow up on outputs, and demonstrate impact, noting that many initiatives relied on ad hoc donor grants and limited staff time in the Secretariat.[4] Stakeholders expressed divergent views on the EMG's administrative positioning within UNEP and the UN system. Some stakeholders have raised questions about potential conflicts of interest in UNEP being the host of the EMG Secretariat, chairing the SOM, being the key funder of the Secretariat, and being an EMG member itself.[4]
Key outputs and outcomes
Notable outputs and outcomes of the EMG since 2001 include:
- Strategy for a climate-neutral UN, initiated the UN's efforts to measure, reduce, and offset its greenhouse gas emissions[5]
- UN E‑waste Coalition, brought together all UN agencies with mandates on electronics, waste, health and labour to address the global e‑waste challenge.[6]
- Model Approach to Environmental and Social Standards in UN Programming, has influenced the design of safeguards systems within UN agencies and some international NGOs[7]
- Strategy for Sustainability Management in the UN System 2020–2030: Phase I set commitments and targets for the environmental sustainability of specific business areas of the UN[8], while Phase II describes a comprehensive corporate sustainability strategy for the UN system.[9]
- Common Approach Towards a Pollution‑Free Planet, aligned UN entities' messaging, policies and programmes on pollution[10]
- Nexus Dialogues, provide a space for multi‑agency discussions on the linkages between environmental issues and other agendas (e.g. biodiversity and food systems, climate and security, environment and humanitarian action).
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Template:Cite UN document
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 Template:Cite UN document
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Template:Cite UN document
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Terminal Evaluation of the UNEP Project Environment Management Group 2018–2022 (Report). UNEP Evaluation Office. January 2023.
- ↑ Moving towards a climate‑neutral UN (PDF) (Report). UN Environment Management Group. 2008.
- ↑ Inter-agency Group on Tackling E-waste (Report). UN Environment Management Group. 2017.
- ↑ "Model Approach to Environmental and Social Standards for UN Programming". UN Environment Management Group. 2019.
- ↑ "Strategy for sustainability management in the United Nations system, 2020–2030 – Phase I: Environmental sustainability in the area of management". Chief Executives Board of the United Nations. 2019.
- ↑ "Strategy for sustainability management in the United Nations system, 2020–2030 – Phase II: Corporate sustainability for the United Nations system". Chief Executives Board of the United Nations. 2021.
- ↑ "Common Approach Towards a Pollution-Free Planet" (PDF). UN Environment Management Group. 2023.
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