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Strategic Partnerships
The conclusion drawn by the countries of East Asia in the SDS-SEA - that land-based pollution is the primary threat to the sustainable management of the seas of East Asia - is supported by other analyses, including those of the World Bank. Pollution discharges from land-based human activities in coastal areas in East Asia, including municipal, industrial, and agricultural wastes, contribute the majority of the ambient pollution in the seas of East Asia. Only 11% of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) generated in East Asia is removed through treatment prior to discharge, and billions of tonnes of wastewater are being discharged annually from coastal cities without treatment. About ten million tonnes of fertilizers are used each year in coastal areas, adding to the already excessive nutrient load in rivers, lakes, and marine waters.
The impact of land-based pollution in the East Asian Seas is recognized as having regional and transboundary significance because the ocean is a medium through which pollutants are relatively easily transmitted. The impacts of land-based pollution, such as widespread eutrophication, health hazards, and degradation of fisheries and spawning grounds, are felt by all countries in the region. Furthermore, insofar as the seas of East Asia are a major economic resource for the world’s demand for fishery and aquaculture products, and a major natural heritage and biodiversity resource for the people of the world, these impacts have global significance.
With the ultimate goal of reducing the ambient levels of pollution in the seas of East Asia, the following three main responses to land-based pollution are needed:
- Reduce existing sources of pollution through optimizing the utilization of existing pollution control assets and initiating new investment in pollution reduction;
- Prevent new pollution sources through regulatory control, including enforcement and the provision of incentives;
- Prevent migration of pollution across boundaries within the region through collaboration between countries and a joint commitment to ensure that pollution is reduced or prevented, not merely exported from place to place.
The Strategic Partnership for the Sustainable Development of the Seas of East Asia was designed to catalyze the effective implementation of the Sustainable Development Strategy for the Seas of East Asia (SDS-SEA). The countries of East Asia, in collaboration with the GEF, World Bank, UNDP and PEMSEA recognized that a more coordinated and innovative approach, which includes a strong focus on implementation and investment, beyond diagnosis and planning, was urgently needed if the objectives and targets of the SDS-SEA were to be achieved. Two GEF-supported projects were developed in the region. The two projects were the GEF/UNDP Implementation of the SDS-SEA, referred to as the regional component of the Strategic Partnership, and the World Bank/GEF Partnership Investment Fund for Pollution Reduction in the Large Marine Ecosystems of East Asia, referred to as the investment component.
The PEMSEA Resource Facility (PRF) will be responsible for: collating M&E results relating to SDS-SEA; evaluating, preparing and disseminating good practices, lessons learned, and/or case studies from individual subprojects under the Fund; promoting replication of good practices; and monitoring the long-term effects of the Fund after its 10-year implementation period. The World Bank is responsible for managing the Fund and coordinating its activities, including: appraising and supervising each sub-project; developing, adopting and evaluating M&E indicators per sub-project; and overseeing sub-project monitoring and reporting activities.
Objectives:
The long-term goal of the Strategic Partnership is to reduce pollution in the seas of East Asia and to promote their sustainable development.
Components of the SP Arrangement:
- Regional Component
To contribute to this overall goal, the objective of the regional component is to operationalize the Strategic Partnership arrangement and reduce pollution through enhanced communication, knowledge sharing, monitoring and evaluation of progress, outcomes and impacts, scaling up and replication of innovative technologies and good practices in pollution reduction across the LMEs of East Asia.
- Investment Component
For the investment component, the objective of the Partnership Investment Fund is to reduce land-based pollution discharges that have an impact on the seas of East Asia by leveraging investments in land-based pollution reduction through the removal of technical, institutional, and financial barriers. Expected outcomes of the Fund would be: increased investment in activities that reduce land-based pollution; removal of technical, institutional and financial barriers that currently limit investment in pollution reduction; and, replication of cost-effective pollution reduction technologies and techniques demonstrated by the Fund.
The Strategic Partnership Approach
- Operating partnership arrangements involving governments, international organizations, donors, private sector and other entities from all sectors of society, from within and outside of the East Asian region
- Individual and collective commitment to the implementation action plans within the framework of the SDS-SEA
- Share experiences and information
- Replicate good practices which advance the objectives of the SDS-SEA
Purpose of the Strategic Partnership
- Foster long-term implementation of the SDS-SEA
- Mobilize and synergize necessary partnerships and resources
- Prepare the ground for a replicable investment mechanism focused on pollution reduction
