Niger Delta Conservation Project PPG: Law and Policy National Expert

The GEF has approved a Project Preparation Grant (PPG) for Nigeria in order to produce a UNDP Project Document and a GEF CEO Endorsement Request (both using the appropriate templates) under the guidance of UNDP-GEF and working in close collaboration with key government officials, donors, NGOs, CBOs and the private sector.

 

The project, budgeted for $3.6 million in GEF funding and $6.2 million 5,265,000 million in co-financing to be mobilized, will conserve globally important biodiversity in Nigeria by mainstreaming biodiversity management priorities into the Niger Delta oil and gas (O&G) sector development policies and operations. This process will contribute to averting threats and risks to biodiversity linked to O&G operations in priority Niger Delta ecosystems within a spatial area of 4,600,000 hectares. This will be achieved through the following three components: 

 

1)      Governance framework for the mainstreaming of biodiversity conservation into the O&G sector in the Niger Delta

2)      O&G industry and community engagement in biodiversity management in the Niger Delta

3)      Financial mechanisms for O&G sector support to biodiversity conservation

 

The PPG process is to be implemented between May and November 2010 and will focus on the activities necessary for approving and finalizing the proposed project. The focal points for the project in government and the PPG team of consultants will work in collaboration with existing related initiatives to carry out the following activities:

 

1. Baseline data collection and information gap analysis

2. Industry Assessment and Initial Industry Engagement Plan

3. Delta Biodiversity Conservation Financing Assessment

4. Stakeholder consultation and engagement

5. Project Scoping, Costing, Risk Assessment and M&E Planning

Encompassing approximately 14 weeks of work throughout the duration of the PPG and reporting to the PPG Activity Coordinator, the national ‘Law and Policy Expert’ will establish the project’s baseline with respect to whether and how Nigeria’s legal, policy and regulatory framework governing the O&G sector effectively incorporates biodiversity conservation.

 

In particular, the expert will:

 

i)        Collect baseline information on policy, legal and regulatory context, outline legislative and regulatory barriers and gaps for mainstreaming biodiversity objectives at the national and regional levels;

ii)       Focus on the laws, policies and regulations for the establishment of O&G concessions, the incorporation of biodiversity into EIA for O&G developments, O&G siting agreements and the legal basis (or gaps) for establishing a biodiversity offset payments scheme in connection with O&G operations;

iii)     Analyze national environment protection policies and legislation on Environmental Impact Assessment, state ecological expertise, national regulations and standards on the design of investment projects and their environmental safety with the view of improving coverage of BD mainstreaming aspects in these regulations;

iv)     Assess the national policy and legislative context and existing or missing regulatory prerequisites for the introduction of the “avoid-reduce-remedy” principles in the O&G sectors.

v)      Assess the legal requirements and barriers for full economic assessment (valuation) of biodiversity degradation and loss;

vi)     Assess legal basis for, existing policies and plans and any regulatory gaps in support of adequate compensation for biodiversity loss from O&G development projects/investments; regulations on post-project rehabilitation methods with a view to require maximum proximity of the restored ecosystem to its pre-project ecology;

vii)   Consider the policy, legal and regulatory provisions and barriers for introduction of environmental insurance and biodiversity off-sets programmes;

viii) Describe the national land tenure context for spatial planning;

ix)     Summarize the legal context for the federal and regional administrative reform processes affecting the proposed project plans;

x)      Elaborate the current shortcomings and gaps/risks in the planning, policy and legal framework and related risks that may affect the efficacy of project activities, and recommendations on how to mitigate these constraints/risks.

 

At the Delta level, review:

 

i)        Delta policies and regulatory frameworks affecting the proposed project plans; special consideration will be given to policies on the territorial (spatial) planning at the regional level;

ii)       Delta-specific O&G development plans and investment proposals;

iii)     Take stock of past experience with the introduction and enforcement of environmental protection and specifically biodiversity mainstreaming legislation and regulations in the Delta; take stock of the willingness of state governments in the Delta to cooperate on biodiversity mainstreaming solutions. Confirm availability/willingness of certain regions/sites to be demonstration areas for the project.

iv)     In close collaboration with the biodiversity finance expert (team member), determine the legal framework existing and any gaps that may need to be filled in order to have the necessary framework to support the possible establishment, capitalization and operation of a Trust Fund, so as to encompass financial contributions from O&G royalties and funding allocations for biodiversity conservation throughout the Delta’s relevant ecosystems.

 

The expert will outline the current shortcomings and gaps in the planning, policy and legal framework and related risks that may affect the efficacy of project activities, and provide recommendations for FSP planning. The consultant will also outline proposals for necessary changes into the targeted legal and policy frameworks, in line with the mainstreaming objectives of the project.