GEF Replenishment

Resources for the GEF Trust Fund are replenished every four years when countries that wish to contribute to the GEF Trust Fund (referred to as “replenishment participants”) pledge resources through a process called the 'GEF Replenishment.'

During the negotiating sessions which constitute the replenishment process, replenishment participants discuss and come to agreement on a set of policy reforms to be undertaken, a document to guide the programming of resources (the programming document), and a level of resources that the GEF will aim to provide to recipient countries during the replenishment period. As part of the replenishment process, replenishment participants review "Overall Performance Studies" of the GEF, which are independent evaluations of the operations of the GEF during the previous replenishment period.

Negotiations for the current replenishment period (the GEF fifth replenishment - GEF-5 - period) concluded in May 2010.  The Summary of Negotiations for the Fifth Replenishment of the GEF Trust Fund highlights the main items that were considered during the replenishment negotiations including the outcomes. The GEF- 5 period extends from July 1, 2010 through June 30th 2014. Negotiations on for the sixth replenishment discussions are likely to start in early 2013.
 

GEF-5 Replenishment

It was agreed that all contributing participants that indicated an intention to contribute the equivalent of at least SDR 4 million for that replenishment would participate in the replenishment discussions. Potential donors who did not intend to provide the agreed minimum contribution were invited to attend replenishment meetings as observers. 

A key innovation for the negotiations was that for the first time in the history of GEF Replenishments, representatives from non-donor recipient countries participated, with one representative each from Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America and Caribbean. NGO representatives also participated in the discussions for the first time.  Another important change was that NGO/CSO representatives also participated for the first time, with one representative from a donor country-based NGO/CSO and another from a recipient country-based NGO/CSO.

Negotiations on the Fifth Replenishment started in March 2009 and continued until May 2010. Thirty four countries participated in the negotiations and made pledges.  Most donors made substantial increases from past replenishments. As of November 2010, the level of new donor pledges amounted to $3.54 Billion (SDR $2.3 Billion). The percentage increase over GEF-4 was 53.4%. This enabled a total replenishment of the GEF Trust Fund of $4.34 billion (SDR 2.832 billion) for the GEF-5 period.

Overall Performance Study

Each replenishment is informed by an independent review of the GEF’s performance over each four year period titled “Overall Performance Studies of the GEF.”  These studies are performed by the independent GEF Evaluation Office.