INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT FOR DOMESTIC CLIMATE POLICIES

The paper examines various target-setting regimes, including the UN Millennium Development Goals and the US Government Performance Results Act, to identify critical success factors for policy implementation. It argues that successful target regimes require a combination of outcome-based indicators, strong local ownership, and integration with budgeting processes. The authors suggest that these insights can help climate policy by translating long-term emissions goals into achievable intermediate outcomes and robust governance frameworks.

• The paper identifies a 'missing middle' problem in international development targets, where the link between high-level policy objectives and final outcome indicators is not fully established, necessitating the use of intermediate output indicators to monitor progress.
• Outcome-based targets are considered a critical feature of successful policy design because they can capture cross-cutting issues, although they must be linked to input and process measures to avoid neglecting statistical changes or missing the broader picture.
• Local commitment and the 'institutionalisation' of measures are more important for the successful implementation of targets than international commitment or the origin of the targets.
• Integrating performance management with budgeting and financial planning is essential for maintaining confidence in targets and incentivising individuals, though this link is often weak in low-income countries due to capacity constraints.
• The timeframe for targets significantly impacts implementation: long-term horizons (e.g., 15 years) allow for holistic policies but provide less structure for actual implementation, while shorter frameworks (e.g., 3 years) enable rapid learning but may only measure intermediate outcomes.
• Top-down imposed targets are often perceived as paternalistic and limiting, whereas allowing local institutions to define their own targets leads to more realistic and achievable aims.
• For climate policy, the authors suggest that long-term emissions reduction objectives must be translated into intermediary outcomes within shorter timeframes (such as three years) to ensure successful government policy implementation.

APA

LESTER, S., & NEUHOFF, K. (2008). INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT FOR DOMESTIC CLIMATE POLICIES. Climate Strategies. https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/lester-and-neuhoff-251108-final.pdf

Chicago

LESTER, SARAH, and KARSTEN NEUHOFF. INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT FOR DOMESTIC CLIMATE POLICIES. Climate Strategies, 2008. https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/lester-and-neuhoff-251108-final.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=LESTER |first1=SARAH |last2=NEUHOFF |first2=KARSTEN |title=INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT FOR DOMESTIC CLIMATE POLICIES |publisher=Climate Strategies |date=25 November 2008 |url=https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/lester-and-neuhoff-251108-final.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{lester2008international, author = {LESTER, SARAH and NEUHOFF, KARSTEN}, title = {{INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT FOR DOMESTIC CLIMATE POLICIES}}, institution = {Climate Strategies}, year = {2008}, month = nov, url = {https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/lester-and-neuhoff-251108-final.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }