Demonstration activities are essential in order to establish a basic stock of practical experiences related to REDD. This section informs about ongoing and planned demonstration activities by Parties, relevant organizations as well as joint initiatives.

Information submitted by:
» Forest Carbon Partnership Facility
» Kalimantan Forests and Climate Partnership
» UN-REDD Programme

» Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF)

The Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF), which became operational in June 2008, is a global partnership focused on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, forest carbon stock conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks (REDD+). The FCPF complements the UNFCCC negotiations on REDD+ by demonstrating how REDD+ can be applied at the country level and by learning lessons from this early implementation phase.

Thirty-seven forest developing countries (14 in Africa, 15 in Latin America and the Caribbean, and eight in Asia-Pacific) have so far been selected in the partnership. The FCPF relies on an effective and inclusive governance structure, with the Participants Committee at its core. This committee is made up of an equal number of forest countries and financial contributors, and is also comprised of observers representing indigenous peoples, civil society, international organizations, the UN-REDD Programme, the UNFCCC Secretariat and the private sector. The World Bank assumes the functions of trustee, secretariat and delivery partner.

With assistance from the Readiness Fund (currently $218 million provided by 14 donors), each participating country prepares itself for REDD+ by developing the necessary policies and systems, in particular by adopting national strategies; developing reference emission levels; designing measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) systems; and setting up REDD+ national management arrangements, including the proper safeguards. 

The focus of the FCPF to date has been on REDD+ readiness. A total of 26 countries have already prepared their Readiness Preparation Proposals and several have received grants to implement these proposals.

In the readiness phase, significant cooperation has been developed between the FCPF and the UN-REDD Programme, the Forest Investment Program and the Global Environment Facility. In addition, a common approach to environmental and social safeguards has been developed, which will allow the proceeds of the FCPF Readiness Fund to flow through multiple delivery partners, including some multilateral development banks and UN agencies, alongside the World Bank.

The Carbon Fund, the second fund of the FCPF, has now also become operational. It will provide payments for verified emission reductions from REDD+ programs in countries that have made considerable progress towards REDD+ readiness. About five REDD Country Participants will qualify for the Carbon Fund based on a progress assessment by the FCPF Participants Committee.

Programs submitted to the Carbon Fund (currently $178 million provided by eight public and private contributors) will have to meet the following criteria:

• Focus on results, namely high-quality and sustainable emissions reductions including social and environmental benefits; 
• Sufficient scale of implementation, e.g., at the level of an administrative jurisdiction within a country or at the national level;
• Consistency with emerging compliance standards under the UNFCCC and other regimes;
• Diversity, so as to generate learning value for the FCPF and other Participants;
• Clear mechanisms so that the incentives for REDD+ reach those who need them; and
• Transparent stakeholder consultations.

In addition, programs implemented at the sub-national scale will need to be consistent with the emerging national strategies, reference emission levels and MRV systems, and be accompanied by measures to assess and minimize the risk of leakage.

The Carbon Fund is intended to play a catalytic role for REDD+. Accordingly, Carbon Fund commitments should be made early enough to provide incentives to countries to adopt the necessary policies and systems and undertake the necessary investments. Consistent with the UNFCCC decision on REDD+ adopted in Cancun in December 2010, the readiness, investment and performance-based payment phases are not purely sequential but will instead overlap to a large extent. Nevertheless, to ensure that carbon finance builds on readiness achievements, the FCPF Participants Committee must have assessed a country’s Readiness Package before the country can enter into an Emission Reductions Payment Agreement with the Carbon Fund.

In the year ahead, the FCPF will advance its work on critical issues at the interface between readiness and carbon finance, in particular reference levels and MRV for sub-national emission reductions programs, and valuation approaches for emission reductions.

More information on the FCPF is available at www.forestcarbonpartnership.org.

» Kalimantan Forests and Climate Partnership

Australia and Indonesia are currently working on a demonstration activity in the carbon rich peatland forests of Central Kalimantan – the Kalimantan Forests and Climate Partnership (KFCP). This Partnership is the first, large-scale demonstration activity of its kind in Indonesia. It trials an innovative, market-oriented approach to financing and implementing measures to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. Australia has committed $30 million to establish the KFCP.

For more information on the KFCP visit: 
< http://www.climatechange.gov.au/international/publications/pubs/kalimantan.pdf >

The KFCP is part of Australia’s International Forest Carbon Initiative (IFCI): 
< http://www.climatechange.gov.au/en/government/initiatives/international-forest-carbon-initiative.aspx >

More information about the IFCI can also be found under:
< Country Specific Information >

» UN-REDD Programme

The UN-REDD Programme
The UN-REDD Programme is the United Nations Collaborative initiative on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD) in developing countries. The Programme was launched in September 2008 to assist developing countries prepare and implement national REDD+ strategies, and builds on the convening power and expertise of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

Support to Countries
The Programme currently has 35 partner countries spanning Africa, Asia-Pacific and Latin America, of which 13 are receiving support to National Programme activities. These 13 countries are: Bolivia, Cambodia, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Ecuador, Indonesia, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, the Philippines, Solomon Islands, Tanzania, Viet Nam and Zambia. To-date, the UN-REDD Programme’s Policy Board has approved a total of US$55.4 million for its nine initial pilot countries and four new countries (Cambodia, Ecuador, the Philippines and Solomon Islands). These funds help to support the development and implementation of national REDD+ strategies. National Programmes in seven UN-REDD Programme countries (Bolivia, DRC, Indonesia, Panama, Tanzania, Viet Nam and Zambia) are now in their implementation phase.

UN-REDD Programme countries not receiving direct support to National Programmes engage with the Programme in a number of ways, including as observers to the Programme's Policy Board, and through participation in regional workshops and knowledge sharing, facilitated by the Programme’s interactive online workspace. These countries are: Argentina, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Central African Republic, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ethiopia, Gabon, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Mexico, Mongolia, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Republic of Congo, Sri Lanka and Sudan. 

Click here for more information on UN-REDD National Programmes.

Global Activities
The UN-REDD Programme brings together technical teams from around the world to help develop analyses and guidelines on issues such as measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) of carbon emissions and flows, ensuring that forests continue to provide multiple benefits for livelihoods and the environment, and supporting the engagement of Indigenous Peoples and civil society at all stages of the design and implementation of REDD+ strategies. The UN-REDD Programme also seeks to build consensus and knowledge about REDD+, to ensure a REDD+ mechanism is included in a post-2012 climate change agreement.

Click here for more information on the Programme’s Global Activities.

Funding

Norway continues to be the UN-REDD Programme’s first and largest donor. Since the Programme was launched in September 2008, Norway has committed US$52.2 million for 2008-2009, and another US$31 million for 2010. Denmark became the second donor country to join the UN-REDD Programme, committing US$2 million in June 2009 and another US$6 million in November 2010. At the end of 2009, Spain announced its pledge of US$20.2 million to the UN-REDD Programme over a period of three years, and confirmed US$1.4 million for 2010. In March 2011, Japan made its first funding commitment to the Programme of US$3 million for the UN-REDD Global Programme and the European Commission pledged approximately US$14 million (€10 million). The UN-REDD Programme is now actively looking for more donors, to meet the increasing demand from countries seeking support from the Programme.

For an overview of current funds and budget allocations, consult the Programme’s Multi-Partner-Trust Fund.

For more information on the UN-REDD Programme, visit < www.un-redd.org >.