|
China
NATIONAL WORKSHOP ON INDICATORS OF SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT
STATE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION ADMINISTRATION, CHINA IN
COOPERATION WITH ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMISSION FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC
(ESCAP) AND THE WORLD BANK
18 MAY 1998
BEIJING, PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA
REPORT
I. ORGANIZATION OF THE MEETING
The National Workshop on Indicators of Sustainable Development was
jointly organized by ESCAP, Policy Research Center for Environment and
Economy of the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) of
China and the World Bank at Sino-Japanese Friendship Center for
Environmental Protection, Beijing on 18 May 1998.
A. Attendance
Twenty participants representing various ministries, departments,
local government research institutes and universities in China attended
the Workshop. In addition, representatives from UNESCAP and the World
Bank also participated in the Workshop. A list of participants is
attached as Annex
I.
B. Opening of the Workshop
Prof. Zhang Kunmin, Deputy Administrator of SEPA opened the workshop.
Welcoming the participants, he appreciated the assistance of ESCAP and
the World Bank in the important endeavor of developing indicators of
sustainable development in China. He mentioned that since UNCED and
especially since the adoption of China Agenda 21 in 1994, the concept of
sustainable development has been well integrated into the planning
process in China. The key problem, however, is the evaluation of
sustainable development which needs tool such as indicators. This
workshop was therefore organized to help towards that end. He hoped the
deliberations of the workshop would assist in elaborating the conceptual
design and discuss ways and means that could lead to field testing and
development of indicators that could be effectively used in China. Prof.
Cao Fengzhong, Director of Policy Research Center for Environment and
Economy (PRCEE), briefly introduced previous researches that had been
done on indicators of sustainable development(ISD) in China. Since this
workshop was the first one for both an ESCAP project and a World Bank
project on indicators of sustainable development in China, he hoped that
the deliberations and recommendations of the workshop would provide
useful guidelines towards the on-going efforts on the implementation of
the two projects. The representative from Environmental Bureau of the
World Bank, Dr. Xie Jian, thanked State Environmental Protection
Administration of China (SEPA) and ESCAP for cooperation in organizing
this workshop. He introduced the work of the World Bank on indicators of
sustainable development, especially genuine saving as an integral
indicator and hoped that this workshop would lead to development of
indicators that could be effectively used not only at national but also
at provincial and local level in China. The representative from United
Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)
thanked SEPA and the World Bank for their cooperation in organizing the
workshop. He stated that ESCAP has been actively participating in the
CSD programme of work on indicators of sustainable development since its
inception. He highlighted the outcome of a regional meeting organized by
ESCAP and its follow-up which resulted in developing a network of four
field testing countries in the region, i.e. China, Maldives, Pakistan
and Philippines. He hoped that the workshop will serve as an important
exercise towards simulation of the future work on ISDs in China. Ms. Liu
Wei, the representative of State Statistical Bureau of China and Mr.
Zhang Kun, director of Sino-Japanese Friendship Center for Environmental
Protection also addressed the workshop highlighting the importance of
indicators of sustainable development and compilation of associated
statistical data.
C. Election of Officers
The workshop elected Prof. Cao Fengzhong, Professor Policy Research
Centre for Environment and Economy as the chairperson for the morning
session and Mr. Guo Xiaomin, Deputy Director General, State
Environmental Protection Administration as the chairperson for the
afternoon session of the workshop.
D. Adoption of the Agenda
The workshop adopted the following agenda:
1. Opening of the Workshop:
a) Opening Statements
b) Election of officers
c) Adoption of the agenda
2. Global and regional efforts at indicators of sustainable
development; overview of CSD Indicators Programme.
3. Sustainable development in China and relevance of indicators of
sustainable development:
a) Priority issues for which indicators are needed;
b) Indicators in current use;
c) Construction of sustainable development indicators;
d) Further development of indicators in China;
e) Menu of indicators;
f) Future data needs;
g) Capacity building needs.
4. Recommendations
5. Other matters
6. Adoption of the report
II. GLOBAL AND REGIONAL EFFORTS ON INDICATORS OF
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Under this agenda item, the representative of ESCAP highlighted the
diagnostic, monitoring , planning and implementation roles of indicators
at international, regional and national levels. In addition, he provided
an overview of the programme of work of the United Nations Commission on
Sustainable Development along with the ongoing regional and national
efforts at the development and field testing of indicators of
sustainable development. The criteria used in selecting the core set of
CSD indicators and the process of consensus building that was used in
selecting them was described. The Driving Force-State-Response (DSR)
framework was explained as a means of organizing the indicators and
providing an appropriate analytical framework. The CSD work programme on
indicators was explained, together with the current status of its
implementation, including completion of the methodology sheets for each
indicator that was contained in the publication "Indicators of
Sustainable Development: Framework and Methodologies". The various
elements of the methodology sheets were also described.
Strong emphasis was placed on the actual selection of a core set of
indicators. He stated that to assist field testing countries in
Asia-Pacific, ESCAP had published "Towards Indicators of
Sustainable Development in Asia and the Pacific", which besides
providing basic steps to be followed by the testing countries also
documented experiences of United Nations, OECD, Asian Development Bank
and the Netherlands towards the development of indicators of sustainable
development. He explained the difficulties in selecting issues, matching
them with indicators and in obtaining supporting data. Giving the
regional example, he pointed out that the priority issues for Asia and
Pacific were selected from the Regional Action Programme on
Environmentally sound and sustainable Development approved by the
Ministerial Conference on Environment and Development in Asia and
Pacific, held in Bangkok in 1995. These priority issues were matched
with the indicators given in the CSD menu. New indicators were also
added and subsequently this core set of indicators suitable for Asia and
Pacific was published as contained in the above ESCAP publication.
The workshop was also briefed on how indicators can be used in
practical planning and charting a course towards sustainable
development. The example of Netherlands was used, where the indicators
development process took shape during the preparation of the first
National Environment Policy Plan (NEPP). Target setting and use of
indicators played a major role in the preparation and implementation of
this plan and has played a crucial role in the forward planning process
since then.
Dr. Xie Jian, representative from the World Bank also made a
presentation on Indicators of Sustainable development. The challenges
for environmental management and the need for indicators were explained.
The framework for indicators of environmentally sustainable development
was described and types of environmental indicators were also explained.
Areas that needed further research were identified. These included
definition of environmentally sustainable development at municipal or
provincial level; selection of environmental issues and indicators;
development and improvement of analytical capacity based on current
data; improvement in compilation and analysis of environmental
statistics; integration of indicators into policies; and making
indicators practical and applicable. Finally, he introduced genuine
savings as an indicator and elaborated it with Indian case study.
In the discussions following the above presentations, it was
mentioned that the work of CSD, ESCAP and the World Bank provided good
background materials for utilization during the field testing in China.
However, in adopting these materials effective consideration should be
given to the local situation so that indicators selected should be
useful for application in China. It was also noted that the indicator
development process was complicated and needed careful research and
experimentation before application.
III. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN CHINA AND RELEVANCE
OF INDICATORS OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Case studies and on-going work on indicators of sustainable
development in China at Policy Research Center for Environment and
Economy, State Environmental Protection Administration, State Statistics
Bureau, Tsinghua University, Peking University and Peking Normal
University was presented, reviewed and discussed under this agenda item.
It was noted that on-going work in China is taking place at national
as well as provincial and local levels. At national level initial
efforts have led to identification of first round of priority issues
that include - continuation of development, efficiency of economic
development, agricultural development, population control, poverty
alleviation and social welfare improvement, science and technology
improvement, enhancing urban infrastructure, sustainable use of natural
resources and environmental protection and pollution control. According
to above priority issues, the key indicators of sustainable development
currently used in China were presented, and reviewed in the light of
technical requirements and data availability. Moreover, additional need
for data sets were assessed. The basis of implementation of the study
were discussed, including adoption of indicators framework, possible
approaches to testing of ISDs, key policy issues that indicators need to
address, ways to tackle these issues and a methodology that could be
used for selecting indicators in China. Proposals were made to broaden
the Working Group on Sustainable Development Indicators, established to
oversee the progress in field testing of ISDs. It was recommended that
further work in the field should ensure that the agreed targets are met
and schedule of implementation is adhered to. Challenges and constraints
were identified and recommendations were made to overcome these.
In addition to the national testing of Sustainable Development
Indicators, the workshop reviewed the efforts and case studies on
indicator development at provincial and local level being conducted in
Shandong province and Yantai city respectively. These studies were
utilizing the concept of Genuine Savings, which was used by the World
Bank at international level. It was noted that the theory and
application of resource accounting under the framework of Genuine
Savings and economic evaluation of environmental pollution damages were
also being utilized. The workshop felt that Genuine Savings approach was
very useful for policy making and its application to the experimental
areas in China should provide replicable models for use elsewhere in
China at provincial and local levels.
IV. RECOMMENDATIONS
1. ESCAP publication "Towards Indicators of Sustainable
Development in Asia and the Pacific", should be translated into
Chinese as it can be of great benefit in developing indicators of
sustainable development at national, regional and city level in China.
2. Indicators testing process should take into consideration the
local and national realities.
3. Statistical data should be improved to take into consideration use
of sustainable development indicators in China.
4. In the field testing process, specific issues of importance should
be further identified in China and matched with the indicators from the
CSD and ESCAP indicator menus given in the document, " Towards
Indicators for Sustainable Development in Asia and the Pacific".
5. Methodologies and processes discussed in the workshop should be
utilized effectively during the implementation of ESCAP and World Bank
projects on Indicators of Sustainable development in China.
6. The Working Group on the development of indicators of sustainable
development in China should be broadened to include other relevant
institutions.
7. Indicators should be designed in such a way that they should be
relevant, replicable, cost effective and responsive to change.
V. OTHER MATTERS
The Chairperson for the workshop thanked ESCAP on behalf of the
Government of China for assisting in the process of national testing of
indicators of sustainable development including the organization of the
National Workshop and the World Bank and the Government of Netherlands
for their funding support.
VI. ADOPTION OF THE REPORT
The workshop adopted its report on 18 May 1998.
Annex I:
List of Participants
- Mr. Ma Xiaoming, Director, Environment Science Centre for Peking
University
- Mr. Gao Li, Environment Science Centre of Peking University
- Mr. Xie Jian, Environmental Economist, The World Bank, Washington,
D.C. 20433, U.S.A.
- Mr. Zhang Kunmin, Deputy Administrator, Professor, State
Environmental Protection Administration, Beijing
- Mr. He Xueyang, Tsing University
- Mr.Qiu Jilei, EPB of Shangdong Province
- Mr. Liang Nailun, Senior Engineer, Yantai Environment Monitoring
Centre
- Mr. Wang Wenfa, Director, Senior Engineer, The Institute of
Environmental Protection Science, Yantai City
- Mr. Lin Xinxin, Director, Fujian Environmental Protection Agency
- Mr. Liu Wei, Senior Statistician, Department of Social, Science
and Technology Statistics, State Statistical Bureau, Beijing
- Mr. Zhang Qingfeng, Foreign Economic Cooperation Office of SEPA
- Mr. Yin Guojun, Statistician, Science and Technology Statistics,
State Statistical Bureau, Beijing
- Mr. Feng Dongfang, Programme Officer, Foreign Economic Cooperation
Office of SEPA
- Mr. Zhang Kun, General Director, Senior Engineer, Sino-Japan
Friendship Centre for Environmental Protection, Beijing
- Mr. Wang Yuzhen, Policy Research Centre for Environment and
Economy, State Environmental Protection Administration, Beijing
- Mr. Zhou Guomei, Policy Research Centre for Environment and
Economy, State Environmental Protection Administration, Beijing
- Mr. Cao Fengzhong, Professor, Policy Research Centre for
Environment and Economy, State Environmental Protection
Administration, Beijing
- Mr. Guo Dongmei, Policy Research Centre for Environment and
Economy, State Environmental Protection Administration, Beijing
- Mr. Guo Xiaomin, Deputy Director General, Senior Engineer,
National Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Planning and
Finance, Beijing
- Mr. Zhi-feng Yang, Professor, Institute of Environmental Sciences,
Beijing Normal University, Beijing
- Mr. Hai Reti Tu Erxun, Institute of Environmental Sciences,
Beijing Normal University, Beijing
- Mr. M. A. Khan, Environmental Affairs Officer, United Nations,
ESCAP
1. Testing of Indicators of Sustainable Development (ISD) in China:
- A leading group established, consisting of the National
Environment Protection Agency (NEPA) and the State Statistics Bureau
(SSB);
- An expert working group established, involving the experts from
different research and educational institutions;
- Steps and content for Phase I of the testing have been identified,
including a summary of the past studies and endeavour in this field,
selection of indicators for testing and a national workshop;
- The methodology sheets of DPCSD are being assessed;
- The extended calculation approach of genuine saving proposed by
the World Bank is being developed.
2. While preparation is being made for testing of
ISD, studies on ISD began a few years ago, as indicated by the following
selected research activities in this field:
- A set of urban development indicators developed by the Policy
Research Center under NEPA;
- Concept of "Green GNP" studied and proposed;
- A joint research program on ISD being undertaken by the Research
Institute under SSB and the Administrative Center of China's Agenda
21;
- A set of urban environmental, social, economic and institutional
indicators being used in the assessment of the environmental quality
and sustainable development of selected cities in China;
- Some local case studies;
- Studies on accounting of some natural resources have been done.
3. Problems encountered in the studies and use of
ISD:
- Methodological adaptation is needed considering the practical
situation in China;
- Applicability of indicators is an issue due to the difficulty in
aggregating them, high cost of testing and regional difference in
applying them;
- Data availability and quality;
- Financial constraint for studies and testing of ISD;
- Coordination mechanism for testing of ISD needs to be
strengthened;
- Lack of public awareness and participation.
4. Future Needs:
- Awareness building among the Government official and the public;
- Capacity-building for promoting studies and testing of ISD,
including training of researchers as well as the Government official
at the national and local levels, monitoring and information
capacity-building and more case studies;
- Financial resources and expertise needed for undertaking and
promoting studies and testing of ISD in China;
- International exchange and cooperation needed to promote the
testing in China;
- More studies are needed for development and application of SDI;
- Economic development will be assessed by using selected
indicators.
For more information, please contact:
Mr. Guo Xiaomin
Deputy Director General
Department of Planning and Finance
State Environment Protection Administration
Xizhimennei Nanxiaojie
Beijing 100035, The People's Republic of China
Fax no.: (86-10) 6615-1762
Mr. Cai Lijie
Assistant Consultant
Department of International Cooperation
State Environment Protection Administration
Xizhimennei Nanxiaojie
Beijing 100035, The People's Republic of China
Tel. no.: (86-10) 6615-1933
Fax no.: (86-10) 6615-1762
|
