"The initiative will provide a base for better environmental management decisions by policymakers, planners, business people, and non-governmental organisations," Mansouri told Reuters.

The oil-rich Gulf Arab country, would also finance the first three years of a pilot project, but a long-term funding strategy was needed to include the private sector and international organisations such as the United Nations, the World Bank, and regional funding agencies, he said.

South Africa says it expects more than 100 world leaders and around 60,000 participants at the WSSD and parallel gatherings of non-governmental organisations and business.