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ISSUES IN THE NEGOTIATING PROCESS
Capacity building
| Background |
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Under the Convention, the SBSTA is charged with providing advice
on "ways and means of supporting endogenous capacity-building in developing countries"
(Article 9), while the Kyoto Protocol commits Parties to cooperating in, and promoting,
"…the strengthening of national capacity building…" (Article 10(e)). Capacity-building
cuts across many of the issues under consideration in the climate change process,
and has therefore featured in several COP decisions (see relevant COP decisions
below). It was taken up for the first time as a separate issue by SBSTA/SBI 11
(October/November 1999).
Through its decisions 10/CP.5 and 11/CP.5, COP 5 (meeting together
with SBSTA/SBI 11) launched a process to address capacity-building in an integrated
manner, and to take a comprehensive decision at COP 6 on capacity-building in
both developing countries and countries with economies in transition (EITs). COP
5 specified that this process should involve an assessment of both existing capacity-building
activities and capacity-building needs and priorities, as well as co-ordination
with the Capacity Development
Initiative (CDI) of the GEF and other similar activities.
The GEF organized several regional workshops on the CDI during July and August
2000 to support the regional assessment of capacity-building needs. AOSIS organized
a further workshop, and UNITAR, in
cooperation with the secretariat and with the financial support of the Government
of Switzerland, organized an additional workshop. GEF and UNDP presented the results
of the CDI assessment phase at SBSTA/SBI 13 part I (September 2000), where they
also consulted with Parties and announced the start of the strategy and action
plan development phase of CDI. In addition, UNITAR and the North-South Dialogue
announced the launch of a project assessing capacity-building needs related to
the Kyoto Protocol in developing countries. The results of this project were presented
to Parties at a special event during COP 6 part I (The Hague, November 2000).
Negotiators failed to reach agreement, however, on a package
of decisions at COP 6 in The Hague and, as with other issues, the negotiating
texts on capacity-building in both developing countries and EITs were forwarded
to a resumed session of COP 6 for further consideration.
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| Latest developments |
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At COP 6 part II (Bonn, July 2001), Parties adopted the Bonn
Agreements on the Implementation of the Buenos Aires Plan of Action. As part
of the Bonn Agreements, Parties completed work on two decisions and frameworks
for capacity-building, one for developing countries and one for EITs. These aim
to provide the basis for action on capacity-building under the Convention and
to prepare for effective participation in the Kyoto Protocol when it enters into
force. The frameworks present guiding principles and approaches for capacity-building,
including a definition of their objective and scope, and set out actions for their
implementation, including financing, operation, time frame and provisions for
review of progress.
At COP 6 part II, Parties also completed a decision on additional
guidance to the GEF, requesting the GEF to adopt a streamlined and expedited
approach in financing activities within the framework for capacity-building for
developing countries, and to report on the specific steps it has taken to implement
the framework.
These three completed decisions were forwarded to COP 7 (Marrakesh,
October/November 2001) for adoption.
Work was also completed on several other decisions including
provisions for capacity-building, notably on the implementation
of Articles 4.8 and 4.9 of the Convention and matters
related to Article 3.14 of the Kyoto Protocol (adverse
effects of climate change and mitigation measures), and on the development
and transfer of technologies. Ongoing work concerning the institutional needs
of least developed countries
is also closely related to the issue of capacity-building.
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| Next steps |
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The completed decisions on capacity-building for developing countries
and EITs, and on additional guidance to the GEF, are due to be adopted at COP
7, along with other decisions that include capacity-building components.
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| Documents prepared for the upcoming session |
| FCCC/CP/2001/5/Add.1 |
Completed decisions on frameworks for capacity-building in developing
countries and EITs, and on additional guidance to an operating entity of the financial
mechanism (the GEF) |
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| Key decisions |
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| Key documents prepared for earlier sessions |
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| Other documents
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| FCCC/SB/2000/INF.1 |
Compilation and synthesis of information on capacity-building
needs and priorities of developing countries (non-Annex I Parties) |
| FCCC/SB/2000/INF.2 |
Compilation and synthesis of information
on capacity-building needs and priorities of Parties included in Annex I to the
Convention but not included in Annex II (EIT Parties) |
| FCCC/SB/2000/INF.3
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Compilation and synthesis of information from Annex II Parties
and relevant intergovernmental organizations on their capacity-building activities
and programmes |
| FCCC/SB/2000/INF.4 |
Report on the progress in the review by the
Global Environmental Facility of its enabling activities, its capacity-building
activities in its normal work programme, its Country Dialogue Workshops and its
Capacity Development Initiative |
| FCCC/SB/2000/INF.6 |
Submissions from Parties not included in Annex I |
| FCCC/SB/2000/INF.7 |
Submissions from Parties included in Annex
I but not included in Annex II |
| FCCC/SB/2000/INF.8
and Add.1 |
Submissions from Parties included in Annex II |
| FCCC/SB/2000/INF.9 |
Submissions from relevant intergovernmental
organizations on their on-going capacity-building activities |
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| Key links |
| GEF Capacity
Development Initiative |
| UNITAR |
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This agenda item is supported by the Implementation
Programme
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