Net Impact Talk 20 Aug 2009

1. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
Green Commodities
A Market-Based Approach to
Sustainable Development
Joseph D’Cruz
Regional Advisor, Environment and Sustainable
Development
UNDP

2. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
The Global Commodity Sector
Scope and Scale:
– Largest employer,
largest source of GDP,
largest source of
exports and foreign
exchange for most
developing countries

3. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
Agriculture in Developing
Economies (1997)

4. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
Commodity Production In Asia
and the Pacific

5. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
Benefits of Agricultural
Commodity Production
Growth
Incomes
Poverty Alleviation

6. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
The Environmental Costs:
Pollution
Deforestation
Environmental Degradation
Loss of Biodiversity and Natural
Resource Base

7. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
The Social Costs:
Health and poor working conditions
Exploitation of workers (including
women and children)
Loss of land tenure
Loss of environmental resources from
forest conversion

8. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
Why it matters to us:
The UNDP Mandate
The UN System’s primary
development agency
Sustainable Human Development
The Millennium Development
Goals

9. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
Development assistance as a
solution
Poverty alleviation projects
Alternative livelihoods
Environmental conservation projects
Health, education, etc.

10. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
The alternative approach:
Leveraging the power of markets
Integrating sustainability into
commodity production
Catalyzing markets for premium
sustainably-produced ‘Green’
commodities

11. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
Examples:

12. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
What we’re doing:
The Green Commodities Facility

13. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
Advantages
Sustainable
Profitable
Environmentally- and Socially-
beneficial
Market access and market positioning

14. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
GCF: Country Programmes
 National platforms delivering policy development
and technical advice for green commodities within
target countries.
 In Thailand:
– Rice
– Shrimp
– Bamboo
– Sugar

15. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
GCF Support
 Extension Services
 Innovative financing mechanisms
 Reviewing carbon footprints of
supply chains
 Information sharing
 Scale up of pilots
 Assist governments in land use
planning for agricultural
commodities (including forestry).
 Technical assistance and training to
farmers and businesses
 Provision of credit and financial
services through partnerships with
financial institutions
 Reform of policies and regulations
 Verification of achievement of
environmental and social practices
 Increasing access to markets

16. United Nations Development Programme
Regional Centre in Bangkok
Thank You
joseph.dcruz@undp.org