Value for Money: A Plan to Develop a Methodology to Audit Environmental Issues

This paper, written by Ximena Mura Alvarez, outlines a strategy to create a Value For Money (VFM) methodology for including environmental issues as part of a VFM audit. Developed for the Comptroller General of Chile, is aimed at measuring the impact of government programmes and define a methodology to effectively deal with environmental problems before they happen.

Excerpt

"The impacts of change on the natural environment are complex and a major concern. The magnitude of current and past economic activity is causing environmental damage, widespread pollution, and the degradation of renewable resources and disruption of ecosystems. Thus, there is an urgent need to improve our understanding of the effects of economic and social developments on the environment

Chile’s environmental policy is based on the concept of sustainable development, understood as the reconciliation of social aspect, economic growth and environmental protection. Furthermore, the topic of the environment has a constitutional rank, by guaranteeing all the people the right to live in a pollution free environment." (Alvarez, 2001)

Contents

• Objective of project
• Background
• Approach
• Implementation of the strategy
• Expected benefits