UNFCCC

712 Words2 Pages

Transforming the products of international negotiation into actual results has always been a difficult process. On one hand, successful translation involves the mobilization of intangibles, such as the political will to push through ratification and necessary changes in domestic legislation. On the other hand, technical details such as the implementation of an effective Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) regime are necessary as well.

In climate change negotiations, previous COPs had emphasized the nature of commitments and actions in light of “common but differentiated responsibilities” and respective capabilities – that is countries should not be expected to all commit to identical cuts in emissions or bear equal economic burden, due to significant differences in socio-economic development between countries. Subsequently, countries have not been able to agree on a legal regime that would involve mandated cuts in carbon emissions, despite constant lobbying from small island developing states and other vulnerable countries. Rather, current negotiation seems to indicate a trend towards countries making their own pledges of emission reductions.

While such a regime would arguably provide more flexibility and hence be more appealing to large emitters, the question of translating policy into action remains: how can we be sure that emission pathways are on the right track, and how would we know if additional efforts are needed under such a regime? Consequently, there have been concerns over whether some kind of process should be introduced to ensure that ambition is sufficient: that is, making sure that countries will make their best possible pledges. The responsibility for such a process is another question: would thi...

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...ing countries seeking financial support does not always match the type of information sought or required by countries that provide financing. Additionally, donor governments need to be confident that the funds they are committing are properly utilized and managed, which will in turn requires transparency and accountability on the part of recipient governments. However, countries vary significantly in the degree of openness of public reporting, and rigor of domestic oversight mechanisms.

These concerns are not unique to the climate change problem, and are in fact present in discussions about the Millennium Development Goals and post 2015 Sustainable Development Goals as well. They reflect the gap between policy and implementation, as well as the growing desire for evidence that we are on the right track with respect to climate change and sustainable development.

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