event 24 Feb 2023 time 10:00 location Beirut, Lebanon

MINARET II: Regional Meeting on “Road to Finance – Nexus Thinking and Decentralisation of Subnational Governments”

Under the patronage of H.E. Lebanese Minister of Environment, The Royal Scientific Society in Jordan in partnership with Municipality of As Semkanieh, Municipality of Jdaidet El Chouf, and Lebanon Eco Movement are organizing a regional meeting on “Road to Finance” for Municipalities – Nexus Thinking and Decentralization of Subnational Governments”.

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Under the patronage of H.E. Lebanese Minister of Environment, The Royal Scientific Society in Jordan in partnership with Municipality of As Semkanieh, Municipality of Jdaidet El Chouf, and Lebanon Eco Movement are organizing a regional meeting on “Road to Finance” for Municipalities – Nexus Thinking and Decentralization of Subnational Governments” under the framework of GIZ “Nexus Regional Dialogue Programme (NRD)” and the MENA Region Initiative as a Model of Nexus and Renewable Technologies Project (MINARET II). The aim of the meeting is focused on sharing experiences, building capacities of relevant institutional bodies, and formulating gender mainstreaming and human rights-based strategies and action plans to support sub-national governments, municipalities and local institutions in accessing financial resources. The meeting will be held at in Beirut, Lebanon on 24th of February 2023.

MINARET II

The MENA Region Initiative as a Model of Nexus Approach and Renewable Energy Technologies (MINARET) aims to result in a new and transformative agenda for municipalities. Working on Access to Finance at the municipal level will require innovative, multi-sectoral and multidimensional approaches. The initiative aims also to represent a roadmap for municipalities and investors explaining legal, financial, and administrative requirements for establishing public private partnerships at the regional and national level.
Underpinning the Access to Finance intervention, MINARET II supports local governance at the municipal level in areas of improved service delivery, organizational management, public engagement, community cohesion, and decentralization preparation. Municipalities face difficulties in financing capital assets and covering deficits. This is due to high operating expenses, including salaries and wages, which prevent local governments from providing or expanding public services. MINARET II plans to improve the business environment at the local level to attract investors and developers, by empowering municipalities and improving local leadership, planning, and accountability to enhance governance, increase participatory planning (by putting citizens at the heart of the planning and development process), and support partnerships between the public and private sector to increase training and jobs. A decentralized approach will leverage local resources and key interventions to reduce bureaucratic obstacles and increase competitiveness, while cleaning up the environment for residents and business.
Municipalities should be equipped to properly take new responsibilities and be in the driving seat responsible for implementing decentralized tasks al local level. This means that the municipal administrations should continue to plan and manage along sectoral lines in a coordinated and integrative manner, and become able to maximize the synergies between water, energy, food or land and the potential co-benefits arising from integrated resource management. The Nexus Approach intends to integrate planning and management processes of the key sectors of energy, water and food/land considering the resources contributing to long-term sustainable development of rapidly growing municipalities in MENA regions.

Objectives of the Regional Meeting

Within the framework of the MINARET II, the regional meeting aims to empower and catalyze the municipalities’ role to run investment projects within the NEXUS framework through a decentralized scheme; allowing municipalities to generate funds in compliance with the local legislations so that to enhance livelihood in the community. This shall be embarked on through unveiling channels associated with new and existing business models and financial tools while at the same time operationalizing a gender equality, and human rights-based approach under the umbrella of nexus-thinking and sustainable development. In particular, maximizing the potential, capacity and capabilities of municipal staff so that to acquire new cognitive and technical competencies (i.e., project management, financial management, etc.) and ensure good governance.

The main themes of the meeting will address the following:

  • Support water, energy, and food Nexus projects that aim to reduce the effects of climate change and reduce carbon dioxide emissions, to ensure better access to green financial resources in Middle East and North Africa region;
  • Facilitate dialogue sessions between investors/financiers (local/international) and beneficiary groups (as well as other necessary stakeholders from private and public sectors, civil organizations) and propose actions to accelerate funding/financing of (integrated) projects to strengthen the climate resilience of WEF Nexus projects at a decentralized level.
  • Integrate water-energy-food nexus methodology in the Arab region into national policies; to increase societal resilience and reduce the risks of climate change.
  • Provide an opportunity for municipalities to identify funding agencies, donor organizations, and expand cooperation with concerned municipalities to attract investments in the fields of environment, energy, water and climate.

The Regional meeting will also feed into the process of establishing a cooperative culture within the municipalities of the region that will further support in applying the aforementioned nexus-thinking approach, business models and financing models and channels.

Participants

The Regional meeting will bring together various local, regional, and international gender, energy and nexus experts, regional municipalities, NGOs, government ministries and entities, UN organizations, private sector, financial institutions, academia and research institutions.

Date and Venue

The Regional meeting on “Road to Finance” for Municipalities – Nexus Thinking and Decentralization of Subnational Governments” will be held at Radisson Blu Hotel - Beirut, Lebanon on 24th of February 2023.

Agenda

10:00 – 10:30

Registration

10:30 – 11:00

Opening Session

11:15 – 11:45

MINARET in a Nutshell: Aims, Approach, Achievements

11:45 – 12:00

The Role of Innovative Financing Schemes in the Implementation of SECAPs

12:00 – 12:20

Coffee Break

12:20 – 12:35

Success Story

12:35 – 13:00

Water Challenges through the Lens of Diplomacy

13:00 – 13:30

Panel Discussion: Access to Finance: Challenges and Opportunities faced by Municipalities in MENA Region

13:30 – 13:45

Coffee Break

13:45 – 15:00

Visual Presentations: Access to Finance and Project bankability within a Nexus Framework / SECAP proposed projects

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