Distr.

GENERAL

FCCC/SBI/1995/1

27 July 1995

Original: ENGLISH

SUBSIDIARY BODY FOR IMPLEMENTATIONFirst session

Geneva, 31 August - 1 September 1995

Item 1 of the provisional agenda

1. The Conference of the Parties at its first session (COP 1), by its decision 6/CP.1 (see FCCC/CP/1995/7/Add.1), requested the Convention secretariat to make arrangements for sessions of the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) and the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) on the basis of annexes II and III to that decision. In the context of the schedule of sessions of Convention bodies established by the Bureau of the COP and after consultation with the Chairman and the officers of the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI), arrangements have been made for the first session of the SBI to be held at the Palais des Nations, Geneva, from 31 August to 1 September 1995. The session will be opened by the Chairman of the SBI at 10 a.m. on 31 August 1995 in Conference Room XIX.

2. The provisional agenda for the first session of the SBI, proposed after consultation with the Chairman and officers of the subsidiary body, is as follows:

1. Organizational matters:

(a) Adoption of the agenda;

(b) Organization of work of the session.

GE.95-

2. Elaboration and scheduling of the programme of work, 1996-1997.

3. Other matters arising from decisions of the Conference of the Parties (COP):

(a) Communications from Annex I Parties: progress report on in-depth reviews;

(b) Matters relating to the financial mechanism;

(c) Institutional and budgetary matters.

4. Report on the session.

(a) Adoption of the agenda

3. The provisional agenda for the first session of the SBI is presented for adoption.

(b) Organization of work of the session

(i) Documentation

4. The following is the list of documents relating to the provisional agenda:

FCCC/CP/1995/7 Report of the Conference of the Parties on its first session,

and Add.1 held at Berlin from 28 March to 7 April 1995

FCCC/SBI/1995/1 Provisional agenda and annotations

FCCC/SBI/1995/2 Proposed programme of work

FCCC/SBI/1995/3 Arrangements between the Conference of the Parties and the operating entity or entities of the financial mechanism. (Draft Memorandum of Understanding between the COP and the Council of the Global Environment Facility (GEF))

FCCC/SBI/1995/3/Add.1 Information on relevant action by the GEF Council

5. The following documents are also relevant to the work of both the SBI and the SBSTA:

FCCC/SB/1995/1 Progress report on the in-depth reviews of national communications from Parties included in Annex I to the Convention

FCCC/SB/1995/Inf.1 Division of labour between the subsidiary bodies established by the Convention

FCCC/SB/1995/Misc.2 Compilation of views of Parties on communications from Parties not included in Annex I to the Convention

6. Other documents may be made available prior to or during the session.

(ii) Schedule of meetings

7. The scheduling of meetings for the session will be based on the availability of facilities during working hours, when services are available for two concurrent meetings with interpretation from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. There will also be some facilities for informal meetings without interpretation. Delegations are urged to use the services fully by starting all meetings promptly at the scheduled time. A tentative schedule of meetings will be proposed by the Chairman on the first day of the meeting.

(iii) Allocation of tasks

8. Following consultations with the Chairman and officers of the SBI, it is proposed that items 2 and 3 (a) be dealt with by the SBI as a whole in plenary. Items 3 (b) and (c) could be assigned to a working group (eg. chaired by the Vice-chairman), meeting during the afternoon of 31 August, that would report back to the SBI on 1 September.

9. The Conference of the Parties at its first session (COP 1), by its decision 6/CP.1, characterized the role of the SBI as that of developing recommendations to assist the COP in the review and assessment of the implementation of the Convention and in the preparation and implementation of its decisions. The COP in that same decision requested the SBI to undertake functions given in annex I, section B, of the decision. Those tasks requiring action between the first and second sessions of the COP were listed in annex II, section B, of the decision. In addition there are a number of tasks arising from decisions 2/CP.1, 3/CP.1, 4/CP.1, 5/CP.1, 8/CP.1, 10/CP.1, 13/CP.1 and 14/CP.1.

10. The SBI will have before it a proposed programme of work (FCCC/SBI/1995/2) drawn up by the secretariat, elaborating on the following matters arising from decisions of COP 1 on which the SBI is expected to develop recommendations:

(a) National communications from the Parties included in Annex I to the Convention. (Decisions 2/CP.1 on review of first communications from Parties included in annex I to the Convention and 3/CP.1 on the preparation and submission of national communications from the Parties included in annex I to the Convention).

(b) First communications from Parties not included in Annex I to the Convention (Decision 8/CP.1 on communications from Parties not included in Annex I to the Convention).

(c) Matters relating to the financial mechanism (Decisions 9/CP.1 on maintenance of the interim arrangements referred to in Article 21, paragraph 3, of the Convention, 10/CP.1 on arrangements between the COP and the operating entity or entities of the financial mechanism, 11/CP.1 on initial guidance on policies, programme priorities and eligibility criteria to the operating entity of the financial mechanism, 12/CP.1 on the report of the Global Environment Facility to the Conference of the Parties on the development of an operational strategy and on initial activities in the field of climate change and the decision of the COP relating to modalities for the functioning of operational linkages between the Conference of the Parties and the operating entity or entities of the financial mechanism (FCCC/CP/1995/7, para. 81 and FCCC/CP/1995/7/Add.1, section III).

(d) Transfer of technology (Decision 13/CP.1 on transfer of technology);

(e) Activities implemented jointly under the pilot phase (Decision 5/CP.1 on activities implemented jointly under the pilot phase);

(f) Institutional and budgetary matters (Decisions 14/CP.1 on the institutional linkage of the Convention secretariat to the United Nations, 15/CP.1 on financial procedures, 17/CP.1 on the adoption of the Convention budget for the biennium 1996-1997, 18/CP.1 on other voluntary funding for the biennium 1996-1997, 19/CP.1 on extrabudgetary funding for the interim secretariat in 1995, 20/CP.1 on the establishment of a multilateral consultative process for the resolution of questions regarding the implementation of the Convention (Article 13) and 21/CP.1 on the date and venue of the second session of the Conference of the Parties and arrangements for the third session.

(g) Methodological issues (including allocation and control of emissions from international bunker fuels) (Decision 4/CP.1 on methodological issues);

(h) Technical cooperation activities of the secretariat and its partners;

(i) Proposals on longer-term activities and organizational arrangements, including any adjustments to the functions and/or allocation of work, and the scheduling and periodicity of sessions;

(j) Proposals for future cooperation between the SBI and the SBSTA and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (Decision 6/CP.1 on the subsidiary bodies established by the Convention);

(k) Possible contributions to the 'Berlin Mandate' process, if requested (Decisions 1/CP.1 on the Berlin Mandate and 6/CP.1 on the subsidiary bodies);

(l) Report on the work of the SBI to COP 2;

11. The SBI is invited to adopt an agreed programme of work for 1996-1997. Since many of the above tasks are described in general terms only, the SBI may wish to discuss each in terms of its definition and scope and the approach to carrying out each task. Relative priorities within the context of the proposed calendar of sessions, are also key issues.

12. Details of SBI sessions scheduled for the period 1996-1997 can be found in the programme of work. (FCCC/SBI/1995/2)

3. Other matters arising from decisions of the Conference of the Parties (COP)

(a) Communications from Annex I Parties: progress report on in-depth reviews

13. The SBI and the SBSTA will have a standing agenda item on communications from Annex I Parties under which documents would be taken up in accordance with the review process schedule. On the basis of decision 6/CP.1, it is expected that the focus of consideration by the SBI will be the policy aspects of the national communications, of the in-depth reviews and of any compilation and synthesis of these, particularly the aspects relating to the overall aggregated effects of the steps taken.

14. The SBI may wish at this session to focus on the in-depth reviews of national communications, which are now under way. A progress report on the in-depth reviews undertaken to date has been prepared for the consideration of the SBI and the SBSTA (FCCC/SB/1995/1). It is suggested that the SBI may undertake a brief discussion of that

report. Substantive discussion could take place at future sessions of the SBI as more in-depth review reports become available and there is a better sense of the policy aspects warranting consideration.

(b) Matters relating to the financial mechanism

15. The COP at its first session, by its decision 10/CP.1, requested the secretariat in consultation with the secretariat of the GEF and bearing in mind comments made at the eleventh session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee, to prepare draft arrangements for consideration by the SBI at its first session and adoption by the Conference of the Parties at its second session. Accordingly, the subsidiary body will have before it document FCCC/SBI/1995/3 containing a draft memorandum of understanding between the COP and the Council of the GEF prepared by the secretariat in consultation with the GEF secretariat. The draft Memorandum of Understanding has been considered by the GEF Council at its meeting from for 18 to 20 July 1995. The comments of the GEF Council, as well as any new information on the activities of the GEF in the area of climate change, will be contained in document FCCC/SBI/1995/3/Add.1.

(c) Institutional and budgetary matters

16. The COP at its first session, by its decision 14/CP.1, took note of, and provisionally accepted, the arrangements proposed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations for administrative support to the Convention secretariat and requested the Executive Secretary to pursue the question of the allotment of overhead to defray administrative expenses, as indicated in the advice of the Secretary-General of 14 November 1994. It further requested the SBI at its first session to review the proposed administrative support arrangements on the basis of a report from the Executive Secretary. The SBI will have to take decisions in this regard so that the arrangements may take effect from 1 January 1996.

17. The Executive Secretary will inform the SBI of the state of consultations on this matter with the responsible department of the United Nations Secretariat.

18. The Executive Secretary will also report on the status of extrabudgetary funding for the Convention in 1995 and on any other institutional and budgetary matters of current relevance.

19. In view of the brevity of the session, it is proposed that the preparation of the report on the session be undertaken after the session by the Rapporteur, with the guidance of the Chairman and the assistance of the secretariat. The report would incorporate any decisions or conclusions adopted at the session on the preceding items.