About 50 countries have prepared interim and full Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs). In this context, this paper examines Millennium Development Goal (MDG)7: Ensuring Environmental Sustainability, its targets and indicators, and responds to three questions: To what extent do PRSPs define and adopt targets and indicators that align with those of MDG7? To what extent do the available data allow tracking of progress with respect to MDG7?

This report examines the extent to which countries and the World Bank have integrated environmental considerations into such strategies and their associated documents. The assessment is based on the 53 Poverty Reduction Strategies (PRSPs), 21 PRSP Progress Reports and their associated Joint Staff Assessments, and 21 Poverty Reduction Support Credits (PRSCs) available as of June 30, 2004. Of the 53 PRSPs, 39 are full, while the rest are interim. This report uses an ordinal scoring scale applied to 17 variables related to environment.

Given the broad impacts of Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs), the WWF Macroeconomics for Sustainable Development Program Office (MPO) sought to assess to what extent P-E realities and challenges have been incorporated into plans and policies described in country PRSPs. The MPO developed and tested a comprehensive methodology to evaluate the extent and quality of coverage of P-E issues in PRSPs and related documents, including World Bank and IMF Joint Staff Assessments of PRSPs and PRSP progress reports.

This report results from a review of Vietnam’s Comprehensive Poverty Reduction and Growth Strategy (CPRGS). The report analyzes if, why and how pro-poor environmental policies, activities and outcomes are being integrated. The research focused
on the GPRGS process and on how this has affected environmental related policy choices, institutional changes, staffing & budgets, public debate, civil society awareness and ultimately improved environmental outcomes.

Also available in Vietnamese.

Honduras produced its Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) in 2001. The research presented here forms part of a four country study aimed at reviewing the drafting and implementing process of the Poverty Reduction Strategies in each country to analyse if, why and how pro-poor environmental policies, activities and outcomes are being integrated.

This report examines the processes associated with the incorporation of environmental issues into Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs) in Ghana, Honduras, Uganda, and Vietnam. The report aims to contribute to the debate on pro-poor development and environmental issues in order to improve poor people’s livelihoods and toward the sustainable use of natural resources.

In the context of a PRSP, environment and poverty are linked in two major ways. One is that poverty alleviation should not damage the environment of the poor, which would only undercut gains in one area with losses in another. The other main link is that improving environmental conditions can help to reduce poverty.

This chapter aims to help PRSP teams integrate environmental problems and opportunities in their work, and consider potential environmental and natural resources interventions in their poverty reduction strategies.