Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia (EECCA)

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the countries of Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan) have been on long journeys to pursue economic development that is also environmentally sustainable.

The last decade witnessed an accelerated awareness of, and more ambitious response to, local environmental impacts of the traditional path of economic development and of global trade. Many countries of EECCA have set and updated national targets to guide their transition towards a green economy, including on green and sustainable energy, low-carbon economy, and natural resource management. EECCA countries have also significantly modernised environmental policies and legislation at both strategic and technical levels to make them less costly and complex while not compromising achieving environmental and climate objectives. These developments have been accompanied by the creation of inter-ministerial co-ordination mechanisms on greening the economy.

Most recently, EECCA countries have integrated green stimulus measures into their response to the COVID-19 pandemic and their broader recovery packages. They also have embarked on aligning the policy objectives of the financial sector development with their national climate and environmental targets.

The Task Force has also developed and provided EECCA countries with a range of practical tools that support policy decision making, including for strengthening environmental performance of large enterprises and SMEs, measuring green growth by using indicators and developing green public investment programmes.

Despite progress, the EECCA countries are still facing significant environmental challenges, partly inherited from the Soviet Union and partly newly acquired as a result of new consumption patterns. They need significant investments and policy reforms to move onto a greener path of economic development.

Since the 1990s, the OECD has supported the EECCA countries in developing policies that improve environmental quality and wellbeing, while creating opportunities for strong economic growth and decent jobs. The long-standing collaboration between the countries of EECCA and the OECD, which has been carried out through the GREEN Action Task Force (previously known as the EAP Task Force), has produced concrete country- and regionspecific results such as, for instance, new strategies for greening the economy, pragmatic reform of policies, regulations and developing options for mobilising green finance.

The GREEN Action Task Force work has been carried out in cooperation with OECD member countries, International Financial Institutions and international organisations, such as the UNECE, UNEP and UNIDO.

Key Publications and websites

• Towards a Green Economy with EU4Environment in Armenia (2022)

• Towards a Green Economy with EU4Environment in Azerbaijan (2022)

• Towards a Green Economy with EU4Environment in Georgia (2022)

• Towards a Green Economy with EU4Environment in Moldova (2022)

• Towards a Green Economy with EU4Environment in Ukraine (2022)

• Towards green transformation of Ukraine: State of Play in 2021 (2022)

• Towards green transformation of the Republic of Moldova: State of Play in 2021 (2022)

• The environmental compliance assurance system in the Republic of Moldova: Current situation and recommendations (2022)

• The environmental compliance assurance system in Armenia: Current situation and recommendations (2022)

• Towards a green economy in the Eastern Partner countries with EU4Environment: mid-term achievements (2021)

• Fossil-fuel subsidies in the EU’s Eastern Partner countries (2021)

Key Publications and websites - continued

• Policy Highlights: “Fossil-fuel subsidies in the EU’s Eastern Partner countries in 2020” (2021)

• Accessing and Using Green Finance in the Kyrgyz Republic – Evidence from a Household Survey (2021)

• An Assessment of Investment Needs for Climate Action in Armenia up to 2030 (2021)

• Measuring Green Finance Flows in Kazakhstan (2020)

• SME Policy Index: Eastern Partner Countries 2020 (2020)

• Access to Green Finance for SMEs in Georgia (2019)

• Promoting Clean Urban Public Transportation and Green Investment in Moldova (2019)

• Sustainable Infrastructure for Low-carbon Development in Central Asia and the Caucasus: Hotspot analysis and needs assessment (2019)

• Mining and Green Growth in the EECCA Region (2019)

• Promoting Clean Urban Public Transportation in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Moldova – Summary Report of Project Implementation 20162019 (2019)

• Enhancing the Economic Regulatory System for Moldova’s Water Supply and Sanitation (2019)

• Addressing Industrial Air Pollution in Kazakhstan – Reforming Environmental Payments Policy Guidelines (2019)

• www.oecd.org/env/outreach/green-action-task-force/

• www.oecd.org/env/outreach/water-eecca/

• www.oecd.org/site/sipa/

• www.eu4environment.org/

Contact for more information

Krzysztof Michalak

Environment Directorate

E-mail: Krzysztof.Michalak@oecd.org

Matthew Griffiths

Environment Directorate

E-mail: Matthew.Griffiths@oecd.org

Virginie Marchal

Environment Directorate

E-mail: Virginie.Marchal@oecd.org