Tracking Global Environmental Financing

The briefing argues that Global Environmental Governance (GEG) suffers from financial inefficiency and a lack of transparency, as there is no centralized system to track how environmental funds are allocated. To resolve this, the authors propose the Global Environmental Financing Tracking (GEFT) Register, a voluntary, web-based information system modeled after the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs' Financial Tracking Service. The GEFT Register would allow donors and recipients to report financial flows, which would then be tagged by issue, source, and recipient. The authors suggest that the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) host the register and produce an annual report to identify funding trends and gaps. The goal is to better match funding supply with demand, improve donor visibility, and rationalize investment portfolios to ensure resources are used more effectively to address global environmental challenges.

• The Global Environmental Governance (GEG) system is characterized by an inefficient use of resources, partly due to a lack of transparent information regarding available funds and their direction.
• While the authors estimate that at least US$10 billion is available for GEG-related activities, this amount is considered a gross underestimation and remains only a fraction of what is required to manage global environmental challenges.
• The proposed Global Environmental Financing Tracking (GEFT) Register would be a voluntary, web-based database modeled after the UN Financial Tracking Service (UN FTS), allowing for the sorting of financing by issue, source, and recipient.
• The authors recommend that the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) host the GEFT Register and publish an annual report on global environmental financing trends to be released at the Global Ministerial Environment Forum (GMEF).
• The GEFT Register is intended to benefit donors by increasing their visibility and helping them rationalize portfolios, and benefit recipients by providing a snapshot of donor priorities to better target funding requests.

APA

Najam, A., & Muñoz, M. (2008). Tracking Global Environmental Financing. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/geg_tracking_financing.pdf

Chicago

Najam, Adil, and Miquel Muñoz. Tracking Global Environmental Financing. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2008. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/geg_tracking_financing.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Najam |first1=Adil |last2=Muñoz |first2=Miquel |title=Tracking Global Environmental Financing |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=April 2008 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/geg_tracking_financing.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{najam2008tracking, author = {Najam, Adil and Muñoz, Miquel}, title = {{Tracking Global Environmental Financing}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2008}, month = apr, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/geg_tracking_financing.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }