Current Projects

Currently, there are 3 projects under the CEP programme, namely the GEF Phase II Project titled “Towards a Convention and Action Programme for the Protection of the Caspian Sea Environment”, in short “CEP-SAP”; EU/TACIS Sustainable Management of Fisheries Project; and EU/TACIS Sustainable Development of Coastal Communities Project.

GEF Phase II (CEP-SAP) Project

The GEF Phase II (CEP-SAP) project is a key element in support of the CEP in the preliminary implementation of the Strategic Action Programme and continuance of the Convention process. Implementation of this project is to be undertaken by UNDP with execution by UNOPS. The objectives of this project are to:

• Commence implementation of the SAP in the priority areas of Biodiversity, Invasive Species and Persistent Toxic Substances.
• Continue with specific capacity building measures to ensure a regionally owed CEP coordination mechanism capable of full implementation of the SAP and regional coordination of the NCAPs and consolidate/update the TDA, SAP and NCAP's following a series of information gap-filling measures.
• Strengthen the environmental legal and policy frameworks operating at the regional and the national levels and where necessary improve implementation and compliance of those frameworks.
• Achieve tangible environmental improvements in SAP priority areas by implementation of small-scale investments supported by a small matched grants programme
• The project office is based in the CEP PCU located in Tehran, I.R. Iran and will be executed in close coordination with an EU-Tacis CEP support project targeting fisheries and sustainable coastal development. UNEP's Regional Office for Europe will take responsibility for guiding the Convention process under a Memorandum of Understanding to be signed with UNOPS.

EU/TACIS Caspian Fisheries Project

(Under construction)

EU/TACIS Coastal Sustainable Development Project

(Under construction)

Past Projects

During the first Phase of the CEP, five projects were implemented, namely:

•  Addressing Transboundary Environmental Issues in the Caspian Environment Programme. This project was implemented by UNDP and Executed by UNOPS

•  Addressing Transboundary Environmental Issues in the CEP: Component IV Priority Investment Portfolio Projects. This project was implemented by UNDP and executed by the World Bank.

•  Addressing transboundary issues in the Caspian Environment Programme: Strengthening Institutional, Legal, Regulatory and Economic Framework for SAP Implementation; this project was implemented by UNEP.

•  TACIS support of CEP in two phases.

•  Ecotoxicology Project (Ecotox).

Detailed information on a, b and c are available in Download Library. Below find some information on the Ecotox Project.

Ecotoxicology Project (ECOTOX)

The Ecotoxicology Project (ECOTOX) was carried out in the First Phase of the CEP Programme in order to investigate into Toxic Contaminant Accumulation and Related Pathology in the Caspian Sturgeon, Seal and Bony Fish. The five Caspian countries participated in the project, namely Azerbaijan , Islamic Republic of Iran, Kazakhstan , Russian Federation and Turkmenistan .

The Project started within the Caspian Region in September 1999. An Inception Workshop was held in October 1999 in Baku , Azerbaijan . The contractor of the project was PADECO, a Japanese company. The project itself was sponsored by the World Bank.

The ECOTOX Project was divided into three “teams”: the seal team, the sturgeon team and the Bony fish team. Each team included National Experts in respective fields, nominated by the National Focal Points of the countries. Leaders of the teams were:

Seal Team: Dr. Susan Wilson ( UK )
Tara Seal Research Centre,
7 Millin Bay Road , Portaferry ,
Northern Ireland BT22 1QD .
E-mail: suewilson@marinelife.demon.co.uk
FAX: +44 (0)28 42728600

Sturgeon Team: Dr. Mohammad Pourkazemi (I. R. Iran)
Chair, SSG
International Sturgeon Research Institute,
P.O.Box 41635-3464 , Rasht , Iran
Tel: +98 (131) 6606503
Fax: +98 (131) 6606502
E-mail: pkazemi_m@yahoo.com

Bony Fish Team: Dr. Igor Mitrofanov (KZ)
Uchitelskaya, 46, Almaty,
480007, Kazakhstan
Tel 1: (3272) 312376
Tel 2: (3272) 482754
Tel 3: (3272) 480919
Fax: (3272) 312376
E-mail: igor@miv.almaty.kz