Mitsuo YOSHIDA, PhD
Senior Advisor, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
Professor (Visiting), Department of Environmental Science andTechnology, Tokyo Institute of Technology (TITECH)
September 2010
• Why do we discuss Capacity Development forEnvironmental Assessment?
• What is the concept of Capacity Development?
• How can we promote Capacity Development?
• Case histories in Capacity Development support forEnvironmental Assessment practice in Vietnam andother developing countries
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Capacity Development
• Since its introduction in the United States in 1969, EnvironmentalAssessment (EA), either Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)in project level or Strategic Environment Assessment (SEA) inpolicies, plans, and programs (PPPs) level, has developed into awidely accepted tool for decision-making of environmental-friendlydevelopment and sustainable development.
• Nowadays, most countries worldwide apply EIA as a preventivetool to evaluate the environmental impacts of projects, and aregradually introducing SEA for PPPs for development.
• However, the application and performance of EA differ significantlyfrom one country to other.
Capacity Development
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Country EIA Regulation
Cambodia EIA Decree 1999China EIA Law 2002Hong Kong (China) EIA Ordinance 1998Indonesia EIA Law 2001Japan EIA Law 1998Korea EIA Act 1999Lao PDR EIA Decree 2000Mongolia EIA Law 1998Philippines EIA Regulations 2003Singapore EPCA 2000Thailand NEQA 1992Vietnam EIA Decree 1994
• EA performance can be defined as the performance of the formalEA system, i.e. the way in which it is described in relevant law andguideline.
• EA performance originally/normally indicates:– the provision of information on anticipated environmental impacts, and
– proposed measures for the mitigation/prevention of possible environmentalimpacts.
• SEA for PPPs level, EIA for project level
• However, different (malfunctioning) EA Performance is observedparticularly in developing countries.
Capacity Development
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• Resources: Administrative management relating to theenvironment are weak and under-funded, and there are significantshortages of trained personnel.
• Political Commitment: The most important policy concern ofGovernment is economic growth, even at the expense of short-termenvironmental degradation.
• Enforcement: Existing legislation for environmental planning tendsto be adequate, but enforcement and the commitment toenforcement is not very functional.
• Poor Transparency: Development planning processes aregenerally influenced by politically powerful individuals.
• Scientific Information: Ecological and social data pertinent to EAare lacking or inaccurate, existing data are not shared widely, anddata processing, storage, and retrieval capacities are limited.
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• Centralized Bureaucracy: Decision-making processes associatedwith mainstream development planning are usually highlycentralized, often a bureaucratic structures.
• Poor Integration: This can lead to power struggles, ‘turfprotection’, and resistance to ‘integrated’ development planning.
• Economic and Technical: Most development planningbureaucrats are in economic or technical/scientific disciplines,which reinforces the tendency to view EA as a technical or scientificinput, rather than a participatory process in planning.
• Disregard of Public Participation: Public participation in planningis commonly viewed as unnecessary, inefficient, time-consuming oreven dangerous.
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• Under this contextual background, environmental planning initiativesoccupy a marginalized position in the development planningprocesses, being assigned a load-mitigating role rather thanstrategic role in the planning process.
• This is probably because of the ‘rational planning’ EA has beenuncritically imported (or implemented under donor-driveninitiative) into those countries without significant efforts to addresscultural, political and administrative differences.
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Van Loon (2010)
for self-motivated and effective EA
• Four main reasons could be suggested to explain thedifferent form and performance (cf. Partidario, 2005):(1) Different cultural interpretations of what development is about,what decision-making is about, and so on
(2) Misunderstanding of the idea on environmental assessment
(3) Inappropriate institutionalization of the EA system
(4) Inadequate functionalization of the EA system
• These suggest the issue of Capacity Development (CD)needs for self-motivated, effective, and more rigorousimplementations of EA (EIA/SEA).
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Capacity Development
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How to Enhance Capacity
• How to enhance the insufficient capacity for EA?
• The concept of “capacity building” emerged from thecontext of international development cooperation (ordevelopment aid). Capacity building means mainly“training” activities where insufficient part of thecapacity is supplied/built by external sources.
• It is possible to supply knowledge and technique,but impossible to do system and institution withoutstanding actual conditions.
• Therefore, it first focused on “building” and“strengthening” of capacity, and in later years the“development” metaphor was adopted.
• What is the Capacity Development for EA? 10
Capacity Development
Comprehensive: Capacity Development (CD) refers to
the ongoing process of enhancing the problem-solving
abilities of a country/society by taking into account all
the factors at the individual, organizational, and societal
levels.
Endogenous: Defining capacity as the ability of a
country to solve problems on their own and considering
it as a complex of elements including institutions,
policies, and social systems, the concept of CD
attaches great importance to proactive and endogenous
efforts (ownership) on the part of the country.
JICA(2006)11
Capacity Development
Individual level
Organizational level
Institutional/Societal level
Issues in practice
(1) Organization without qualified
individuals
(2) Qualified individuals but poor
activity of organization
(3) Qualified individuals and well
organization, but poor acceptance
in the society
Capacity Development
Societal/InstitutionalLevel
OrganizationalLevel
Individual Level
• Law, Bylaws, Guideline,Regulation
• Public Awareness, PrivateSector
• Education, Social Capital
• Organization structure,Management, Fund
• Intellectual asset• Physical asset, Equipment• Human asset
• Knowledge, skill• Technique, Proficiency• Intention, Responsibility• Motivation
Components of Capacity at Each Level
Capacity Development
Yoshida(2006)
Institutional and Societal
Organizational
Individual
Management andcoordination ofEnvironmentalAdministration
Cooperation amongrelevant
organization
Law and guidelinefor EA
Public and Privatesector participation
Scientific, technical,and societalinformation
An Example
Knowledgeand skill of
Staff 14
Capacity Development
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EnvironmentalAdministration
NGO
DevelopmentPlanning Org.
DevelopmentImplementation Org.
PrivateConsulting Firm University
Actual society is an ensemble of various individualsand organizations, the Stakeholders.
citizens
Capacity Development
Enabling environment
• Institutional Aspect
– Institutionalization of the EA system based onthe given conditions
• Functional Aspect
– Functionalization of the EA system with givenresources and conditions
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Institutional and Functional Aspectson Capacity Development for EA
Capacity Development
• Institutions are structures and mechanisms of socialorder governing the behavior of individuals within a givenhuman collectivity. Institutions are identified with themaking and enforcing of rules governing cooperativehuman behavior (cf. Durkheim).
• The term "institutionalization" is the process ofembedding something within an organization or societyas a whole.
• The term "institutionalization" may also be used in apolitical sense to apply to the creation or organization ofgovernmental institutions or particular bodies responsiblefor implementing policy.
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Capacity Development
• Functionalization takes place during the process of theinteraction among minds, ideas, and concepts, on onehand, and reality (resources and conditions), on theother (cf. Max Scheler).
• Functionalization of EA means that the ideas(institutions) of EA enter into a function with a givenreality (resources and conditions), which is not a subjectto a law.
• If EA is functionalized with the reality of a state of affairs,then EA works. If it is failed with the reality, it does not.
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Capacity Development
Provision/Setup
Institutionalization
Functionalization
Capacity Development in Environmental Assessment
Capacity Strengthening at Individual level
Capacity Strengthening at Organizational level
Capacity Strengthening at Institutional and Societal levels
Capacity Development
Feedback
Feedback
Vietnam Case History(1994 EIA Law) (EIA Institutionalization late90s to early 00s) (2008 SEA Pilot)
- IAIA(2002)
• A good-quality SEA process informs planners, decision-makers, and public on the sustainability of strategicdecisions, facilitates the search for the best alternativeand ensures a democratic decision-making process.
• This enhances the credibility of decisions and leads tomore cost- and time-effective EIA at the project level.
• For this purpose, a good-quality SEA process: isintegrated, is sustainability-led, is focused, isaccountable, is participative, and is interactive.
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Capacity Development
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The SEA performance criteria were developedthroughout three years of discussions in IAIAannual conferences (1998 and 2000)
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Capacity Development
6 Criteria Description (17 Sub-Criteria) Aspect of Capacity
integrated - For all strategic decisions for the development- Interrelationships with social/economic aspects- tiered to policies in relevant sector and to projects
FunctionalInstitutionalInstitutional
sustainability-led
- facilitates identification of sustainable option(s)and alternative proposals
Functional
focused - sufficient, reliable & usable information- concentration on key issues of sustainability- Customizing for the decision-making process- Cost- and time-effective
TechnicalTechnicalFunctionalTechnical
accountable - For strategic decision by leading agencies- Professionalism, fairness, impartiality and balance- Independent checks and verification- Justification how sustainability issues accounted
FunctionalFunctionalInstitutionalInstitutional
participative - Public involvement and information sharing- Their inputs and concerns in documentations- Easily-understood information and accessibility
InstitutionalInstitutionalTechnical
interactive - Availability of the result early enough- Sufficient information on the actual impacts
FunctionalInstitutional
A good-qualitySEA process is:
The IAIA(2002) criteria aims to provide general guidance on how to build effective new SEAprocesses and evaluate the effectiveness of existing SEA processes.
Good-quality SEA process is integrated
• Ensures an appropriate environmental assessment of allstrategic decisions relevant for the achievement ofsustainable development.
• Addresses the interrelationships of biophysical, socialand economic aspects.
• Is tiered to policies in relevant sectors and (trans-boundary) regions and, where appropriate, to project EIAand decision making.
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Capacity Development
IAIA(2002)
Good-quality SEA process is sustainability-led
• Facilitates identification of development options andalternative proposals that are more sustainable,
• that contributes to the overall sustainable developmentstrategy as laid down in Rio 1992 and defined in thespecific policies or values of a country.
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Capacity Development
IAIA(2002)
Good-quality SEA process is focused.
• Provides sufficient, reliable and usable information fordevelopment planning and decision making.
• Concentrates on key issues of sustainable development.
• Is customized to the characteristics of the decisionmaking process.
• Is cost- and time-effective.
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Capacity Development
IAIA(2002)
Good-quality SEA process is accountable.
• Is the responsibility of the leading agencies for thestrategic decision to be taken.
• Is carried out with professionalism, rigor, fairness,impartiality, and balance.
• Is subject to independent checks and verification.
• Documents and justifies how sustainability issues weretaken into account in decision making.
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Capacity Development
IAIA(2002)
Good-quality SEA process is participative.
• Informs and involves interested and affected public andgovernment bodies throughout the decision-makingprocess.
• Explicitly addresses their inputs and concerns indocumentation and decision-making.
• Has clear, easily-understood information requirementsand ensures sufficient access to all relevant information.
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Capacity Development
IAIA(2002)
Good-quality SEA process is interactive.
• Ensures availability of the assessment results earlyenough to influence the decision-making process andinspire future planning.
• Provides sufficient information on the actual impacts ofimplementing a strategic decision, to judge whether thisdecision should be amended and to provide a basis forfuture decisions.
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Capacity Development
IAIA(2002)
Capacities for EA at LevelsStakeholders Environmental
AdministrationPPPs and ProjectImplementation
Public
IndividualLevel
Staff sufficiency (quality,skills, personaleffectiveness)Communication
Staff sufficiency(quality, skills,personaleffectiveness)Communication
Knowledge actors(quality, skills,personaleffectiveness)Communication
OrganizationalLevel
Resource capacity(financial, office)Decision-makingManagement
Resource capacity(financial, office)EA execution tech.Report preparation
Organized civilsocietyResource capacity(financial)
InstitutionalLevel
Legal provisions EAEA procedureNetworkingMission and StrategyStructure
Institutional capacityTransparency ofinformationObedience to formaldecision
ReviewingMonitoringNetworkingParticipating
Societal Level Regulatory qualityAccountability to public
Accountability topublic
Organized civilsocietyMass media
General Scientific and technological information, Law and regulation, CultureInter-organization cooperation, Political and economic background
Capacity Development
Needed Capacity Componentsfor Institutionalization and Functionalization
• Ability for participatory engagement and empowerment to all thestakeholders, including marginalized group(s).
• Ability for analysis particularly to address environmental trends andthe economic impacts with different options, including future-searching.
• Ability for planning and prioritization, including management skills.
• Ability for political action and communications for performingclear, well-targeted and influential SEA.
• Ability for monitoring, evaluation and learning for handlingcomplex phenomena such as environment-development links.
• Specific scientific/technical capabilities on given issues (Sen).
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Modified from Dalal-Clayton and Bass(2004)
Capacity Development
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Capacityat three levels
for eachstakeholder
Desirable OutcomesFor establishing EA
Provision of EAand Central/Localdecisions for setup
Institutionalizationof the EA system
Functionalizationof the EA system
Participatory engagement
Analysis, future searching,visioning
Planning and prioritization
Politics and communication
Monitoring and learning
Specific scientific/technicalcapabilities
Individuallevel
Organizationallevel
Institutional/Societal level
Capacity DevelopmentObtaining, strengthening,connecting, mastering, adapting,maintaining the capacities for:
Resources
Framework of the Capacity Development for Environmental Assessment
Modified from Dalal-Clayton and Bass (2009) and Bass et al. (2006)
Capacity Development
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Development Activity Flow
<PPPs>
Policy Level
Direction and Framework
of each Program
Plan/Program Level
Package of Projects, or
Outline of Project
Strategic Environmental
Assessment (SEA)
1) Done by policy maker
2) Public involvement,
Environmental authority
3) Assessment in
policy/planning level
Project Level
Detailed action plan for
Project implementation
Environmental Impact
Assessment (EIA)
1) Done by developer
2) Public involvement,
Environmental authority
Project Implementation
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Capacity Development
Environmental AssessmentE
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CD
CapacityDevelopment(CD) of EntireSociety
Planning for Sustainable development
Projects under a PPP
Project
Project
EIA
SEA
Project activities withenvironmental consideration
Project activities withoutenvironmental consideration
Expansion of Inclusiveness in Capacity
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Capacity Development
Institutionalization
Fu
nctio
na
lizatio
n
(1) Provision/Setup of an EA system, such as law, guideline andprocedure, is the first step for introducing EA.
(2) However, we cannot expect proper performance of EA processwithout institutionalization and functionalization of the EA system.
(3) The institutionalization and functionalization strongly dependon comprehensive Capacity Development of stakeholders atindividual, organizational, and societal levels.
(4) Development of the scope from EIA in project to SEA in PPPs(policies/plans/programs) can be achieved by CD along withexpanding the inclusiveness of Capacity.
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Capacity Development
Extened version of this presentation can be freely downloadedfrom the following web site:
www.geocities.jp/epcowmjp/SEA-CD.pdf
Van Loon, L.(2010) An analytical framework for capacity development in EIA – The case of Yemen.Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 30, 100-107.
Dalal-Clayton, B. and Bass, S. (2009) The Challenges of Environmental Mainstreaming - Experienceof integrating environment into development institutions and decisions. IIED
ICEM(2008) Strategic Environmental Assessment of the Quang Nam Province Hydropower Plan forthe Vu Gia-Thu Bon River Basin. ADB Technical Assistance Consultant’s Report prepared for theADB, MONRE, MOITT & EVN, Hanoi, Viet Nam.
原科幸彦(2007編) 環境計画・政策研究の展開: 持続可能な社会づくりへの合意形成.岩波書店
Yoshida, M. (2006) Dissecting technical cooperation in solid waste management from a capacitydevelopment perspective. Technology and Development, 19, 5-13.
Maria do Rosário Partidário (2005) Capacity-Building and SEA. In Implementing StrategicEnvironmental Assessment (edited by Michael Schmidt, Elsa João and Eike Albrecht), p.649-663.Springer-Verlag
Doberstein, B. (2003) Environmental capacity-building in a transitional economy: the emergence ofEIA capacity in Viet Nam. Impact Assessment Project Appraisal, 21,(1), 25-42.
IAIA (2002) Strategic Environmental Assessment Performance Criteria. IAIA Special PublicationSeries No.1 (January 2002).
Abaza, H., Bisset, R. and Sadler, B. (2004) Environmental impact assessment and strategicenvironmental assessment towards an integrated approach. UNEP.
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Capacity Development
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References (JICA Reports on Capacity Development)
Capacity Assessment
『キャパシティ・ディベロップメント-CDとは何か、JICAでCDをどう捉え、JICA事業の改善にどう活かすか-途上国の主体性に基づく総合的課題対処能力の向上を目指して』(2006)
『事業マネジメント・ハンドブック』(2007)
『指標から国を見る』(2008)
『開発途上国廃棄物分野のキャパシティディベロップメント支援のために』(2005)
『キャパシティ・アセスメント・ハンドブック』(2008)