A programmatic review of UNIDO/UNEP national cleaner production centres

The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) jointly initiated the National Cleaner Production Centres (NCPCs) programme in 1995 with the funding of eight centres. The centres and the CP assessors trained by them do not deliver ready-made solutions, but rather they train and advise their clients on how to find the best solutions for specific problems. Two UNIDO evaluations of the programme confirm that the methodology for implementing the CP concept at the factory level is an effective tool for identification and prioritisation of technology changes that yield both environmental and financial benefits. However, the dissemination and application of the CP concept to small and medium size (SMEs) on the basis of its own financial merits does not occur easily; hence, there is a need to support the dissemination of the concept through promotional (awareness raising, training) activities, national policy formulation and access to financing.