Natural resources and the environment can support long-term recovery, peacebuilding and reconstruction. UNEP assists national governments to address environmental priorities through recovery programmes that are tailored to country-specific needs, following a post-crisis environmental assessment.
Environmental peacebuilding integrates natural resource management in conflict prevention, mitigation, resolution, and recovery to build resilience in communities affected by conflict. Helping countries manage their natural resources and use them after a disaster or conflict is essential to guarantee peace and a sustainable long-term recovery.
Environmental peacebuilding
Country recovery and resilience
In Haiti, since 2008, UNEP has been working to assist the country with post-crisis recovery. UNEP’s work in agenda has been marked by major disasters including the earthquake in 2010 that claimed approximately 300,000 lives, and the category 5 hurricane Matthew in 2016 that devastated the targeted area of support of UNEP in the Grand Sud and claimed another 3,000 lives. Haiti never really recovered. UNEP Haiti builds on robust knowledge of the country, firm anchorage in the Grand Sud with close and long partnership with local communities and organizations, and trusted relationship with public authorities at multiple levels.
Overall UNEP strategic approach to Haiti consists in demonstrating the feasibility of establishing resilient and sustainable rural landscapes, to pave the way for scaling up and effective recovery of the country in ecological as well as in social stability, human development and economic terms.
Past interventions confirmed the relevance of important concepts including ridge-to-reef approach, green and blue economy, green value chains and, naturally, locally suitable operating model and ecosystem restoration practices, as well as governance capacity-building at both central and local levels. UNEP and partners are now aiming at switching from building trust, partnerships, capacities and piloting targeted activities, to strengthening landscape level governance and impacts, through cross-sector integration, leveraging and aligning external aid, and building robust information system and sustainable financial mechanisms to support transformation towards environmental restoration and resilience.
