Step 6.1: Preparations
The preparations for the drafting of the Finance Plan involve the establishment of a team and partnerships, including any technical advisory committees. The BFP formulation is different from other assessments in weighting the political commitment to implementation, such as responsibilities related to the different solutions and expectations. The Steering Committee is likely to be the main client and will approve the BFP. The team should include a lead writer—ideally a natural resource economist or public finance expert—,other members of the BIOFIN team, national and international experts, and key government and civil society partners. The greater the outreach and engagement, the higher the chance that the BFP will become a true national plan. All previous documents produced by BIOFIN (including any spreadsheets) and the main source documents, NBSAP, green economy strategies, etc. should be gathered and shared among all BFP team members.
Agreeing on the ownership and legal status of the Plan is a milestone task. This requires a clear understanding of the roles and responsibilities of the institutions involved.
When deciding on the Finance Plan’s ownership and governance, consider the following questions:
-
What will be the official or legal status of the Plan (e.g. adopted as legally binding, published as a medium-term national strategy) and what formal processes are required for validation and approval? How long will the approval process take?
-
Who will own and implement the Plan after the BIOFIN project cycle is completed?
-
Will the owner of the Plan or implementing organizations face serious capacity challenges in the implementation of the Plan? And if so, how can capacity be built?
-
What measures and recommendations could be fast-tracked for implementation to retain and motivate a high level of interest amongst decision makers5 during a lengthy officialization process?
