The Environment and Social Management Framework was prepared for the “Green and Inclusive Cities in Mongolia” project under the GEF-8 Sustainable Cities Impact Program, which aims to support cities and local governments in advancing integrated urban planning and investing in nature-positive, climate-resilient, and carbon-neutral development. The program is implemented through country-level child projects, with a strong focus on addressing urban growth challenges that hinder sustainable and inclusive development outcomes.
The Mongolia project, approved by the 67th GEF Council meeting in June 2024, targets Ulaanbaatar, Darkhan, and Erdenet. It seeks to strengthen policy and regulatory frameworks, promote innovative financing for sustainable urban investments, and enhance knowledge sharing and institutional capacities. The project emphasizes integrated, multi-stakeholder governance mechanisms and catalytic financial approaches to enable large-scale ecosystem restoration and resilient urban transformation.
The project is designed to deliver significant global environmental benefits, including large-scale land and ecosystem restoration, improved landscape management practices, and substantial greenhouse gas emission mitigation. It also aims to expand renewable energy use, improve energy efficiency, and directly benefit tens of thousands of people through inclusive, gender-responsive urban investments that support livelihoods, health, and resilience.
The ESMF is grounded in UNDP’s Social and Environmental Screening Procedure, which identified a moderate overall risk profile for the project. Key social and environmental principles are triggered, including commitments to human rights, gender equality, sustainability, accountability, biodiversity conservation, climate risk management, community health and safety, labor conditions, and pollution prevention. The framework ensures that potential risks and impacts are systematically identified, assessed, and managed throughout project implementation.
Project activities span integrated urban and spatial planning, low-carbon energy and transport solutions, climate-resilient infrastructure, land and ecosystem restoration, flood control, urban green space enhancement, and improved water and waste management systems. Capacity development is a central pillar, supporting municipal institutions, urban professionals, community groups, and women leaders to adopt inclusive planning practices, nature-based solutions, circular economy approaches, and climate-informed decision-making.
Community engagement and stakeholder participation are embedded throughout the project cycle. Government agencies, academic institutions, civil society organizations, local communities, producers, and international development partners were extensively consulted during project design, and their inputs were incorporated into the final framework. Ongoing engagement will follow UNDP’s stakeholder participation principles to ensure transparency, inclusiveness, and responsiveness to local needs.
Overall, the ESMF provides clear guidance for managing social and environmental risks during project inception and implementation. It outlines processes for further screening, development of management plans, grievance redress, gender-responsive actions, and monitoring arrangements, ensuring that the project delivers sustainable urban transformation while safeguarding people, ecosystems, and vulnerable groups.
