UNIDO participating in the 5th GEF Assembly

The 5th GEF Assembly was held back to back with the 46th GEF Council meeting and attracted more than 1000 participants drawn from a select roster of prominent environmentalists, parliamentarians, business leaders, scientists, NGO leaders, ministers from member states and other country authorities. The GEF Assembly combined plenary and high-level panels, exhibits, side events and GEF project site visits and has marked the closing of the GEF-5 cycle and the launch of GEF-6.

A substantial delegation of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, headed by Director General, LI Yong, actively participated in the 5th GEF Assembly and the associated meetings and side events.

As a result of the participation and efforts of the entire delegation, UNIDO was amongst the most visible GEF partners during the Assembly. Members of the delegation chaired, or actively engaged in, several side events and interacted with the GEF CEO and staff, as well as with the Executive Director of the Multi-Lateral Fund for the Montreal Protocol. Finally, the UNIDO team conducted bilateral meetings with over 20 delegations during these five days.

UNIDO received strong support from the GEF Secretariat and the GEF Operational Focal Points around the world. As the GEF moves to comprehensive, integrated approaches where environment considerations are interwoven with broader concerns of socio-economic progress, the alignment with UNIDO’s ISID strategy becomes increasingly apparent.

Looking ahead to the GEF-6 Replenishment Cycle (2014-2018), UNIDO is expecting to further expand the UNIDO-GEF partnership to serve the Member States of the GEF and UNIDO alike.

For more information on UNIDO’s participation in the 5th GEF Assembly, please see theUNIDO participating in the 5th GEF Assembly newsletter.