Reviews
News

Technical review of information reported under the Convention by Annex I Parties in their BR and NC (2022)

Get involved

We are looking for experts. More information here.

 

Training for reviewers

To ensure that the review process is comprehensive and rigorous, the secretariat has prepared training courses for reviewers of BRs and NCs.
Only experts who successfully pass the exam can participate in the reviews.
More information on the training programme can be found here.

Related links
International Assessment and Review
Preparation of national communications and biennial reports
Review Reports of National Communications and Biennial Reports
Multilateral Assessment
Lead Reviewers' Meeting
Review Practice Guidance

Review Reports of NCs and BRs

An important part of the transparency system under the Convention is the review of Annex I Parties National Communications (NCs) and Biennial Reports (BRs). 

At COP20 in Lima Parties adopted the “Guidelines for the technical review of information reported under the Convention related to greenhouse gas inventories, biennial reports and national communications by Parties included in Annex I to the Convention”. <13/CP.20.>

These review guidelines provide a solid foundation for the technical reviews of national communications and biennial reports. Reviews are coordinated by the secretariat and conducted by international expert review teams (ERTs). The purpose of the review by ERTs is to provide a thorough and comprehensive technical assessment of the implementation of the Convention by Annex I Parties, and to ensure that the COP has sufficient information to carry out its responsibilities to review the implementation of the Convention.

The outcome from the reviews is reflected in review reports, which are prepared under the collective responsibility of the ERT.

 

Lead Reviewers' Meetings

As part of the Expert Review Teams, there are two experienced experts who act as co-lead reviewers during the review. One co-lead reviewer is selected from an Annex I Party and one from a non-Annex I Party. Lead reviewers ensure that the reviews in which they participate are performed by each ERT according to the relevant review guidelines and are implemented consistently across Parties. They also ensure the quality and objectivity of the thorough and comprehensive technical examinations in the reviews and provide for the continuity, comparability and timeliness of the reviews.

The secretariat facilitates annual meetings of lead reviewers for BRs and NCs in accordance decision 13/CP.20 and its annex. Annual meetings for the lead reviewers for GHG inventories are also held, as part of this process. These meetings provide an important opportunity to harness the LRs experience in undertaking reviews to help improve the quality, efficiency and consistency of the reviews, including through the preparation of a Review Practice Guidance.

 

Review Practice Guidance

The review practice guidance (RPG) is a living document that aims to improve consistency among the individual biennial report (BR) and national communication (NC) reviews during a review cycle and across the review cycles. 

The RPG does not aim to cover an exhaustive list of questions or concerns raised by the expert review teams (ERTs) during the reviews, but rather focuses on the difficulties encountered in reviews, as observed by the review coordinators and the ERTs, and on the practices most commonly applied in such cases by the ERTs.

 

 

 

Content