Established in 1992, the year of the Rio Earth Summit, the GEF Small Grants Programme embodies the very essence of sustainable development by "thinking globally acting locally". By providing financial and technical support to projects that conserve and restore the environment while enhancing people's well-being and livelihoods, SGP demonstrates that community action can maintain the fine balance between human needs and environmental imperatives.
SGP recognizes that environmental degradation such as the destruction of ecosystems and the species that depend upon them, increasing levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in our atmosphere, pollution of international waters, land degradation and the spread of persistent organic pollutants are life-threatening challenges that endanger us all. However, poor and vulnerable communities –SGP's primary stakeholders- are most at risk because they depend on access to natural resources for their livelihoods and often live in fragile ecosystems.
The programme provides grants of up to $50,000 directly to local communities including indigenous people, community-based organizations and other non-governmental groups for projects in Biodiversity, Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation, Land Degradation and Sustainable Forest Management, International Waters and Chemicals.
The programme is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and executed by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS).
Areas of work: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Land Degradation, Sustainable Forest Management, International Waters, Chemical
Our Approach: Capacity Development, Community Empowerment and Participation, Poverty Reduction, Gender Mainstreaming, Indigenous People, Youth Participation, Knowledge Management, Replication and Up-scaling, Policy Impact
SGP at the Global Level
Central Programme Management Team
A small team in headquarters provides global oversight to SGP's global operations and decentralized country programmes. CPMT comprises a Global Manager, a Deputy Global Manager, Programme Advisors on the GEF focal areas, a Programme Specialist for knowledge management, and 2 Programme Associates. Together they provide global supervision and day-to-day programmatic and operational guidance to over 125 participating countries.
The SGP Global Manager and Deputy Global Manager are responsible for overall SGP management, strategic direction, and policy development. CPMT staff are responsible for regional coordination and support country programmes on substantive and technical matters related to focal areas and thematic directions, capacity and partnership development, knowledge management and communications, and monitoring and evaluation.
UNDP Communities Cluster (TBD)
Since 2011, the most mature SGP country programmes have upgraded to full size projects and are managed by UNDP's Communities, Livelihoods and Markets cluster. These countries are: Brazil, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, India, Kenya, Mexico, Pakistan and the Phillipines.
SGP at the Country Level
At the national and local levels, SGP operates in a decentralized and country-driven manner through country programme teams composed of a National Coordinator (NC), often a Programme Assistant (PA), and a National Steering Committee (NSC) in each participating country. SGP country programmes are hosted primarily by UNDP Country Offices, but also by national host institutions (NHI).
National Country Teams
Each country programme has a locally recruited National Coordinator (NC), and often a Programme Assistant (PA) who are responsible for managing country programme implementation and for ensuring that grants and projects meet GEF and SGP criteria. The NC also serves as secretary to the NSC and acts as liaison with the local government, UNDP and all other key stakeholders at the local level.
Country Programme Strategies
Each participating country develops a country programme strategy, which adapts the SGP global strategic framework to specific country conditions. SGP country strategies take into account existing national environmental strategies and plans, as well as those relating to national development and poverty eradication.
Through the CPS, the country is able to put emphasis on certain thematic and geographic areas to ensure synergy and impact, as well as to facilitate programme administration.
National Steering Committee
All SGP country programmes have a voluntary National Steering Committee (NSC), which is the central element of SGP and provides the major substantive contribution to and oversight of the programme. The NSC is comprised a majority of civil society organizations, as well as representatives of the government, UNDP, the academia, indigenous peoples' organizations, the private sector and the media.
The NSC helps develop the Country Programme Strategy (CPS), considers whether proposals for grants are feasible and meet SGP criteria, and what kind of technical support is needed for implementation. It is also responsible for the final approval of grants, undertaking monitoring and evaluation visits to the projects, providing advice, ensuring proper monitoring and evaluation, helping extract, share and replicate successful SGP projects and practice and promoting SGP at the national and international level.
