UNDP , UNEP , UDP , and the WRI , in cooperation with the UNFCCC Secretariat, are currently developing joint guidance to be used by countries as they prepare for NDC implementation. The guidance will be informed by real-world country examples and a public draft will be available for comment by countries in early 2017. In order to seek early feedback on the guidance, we have developed a draft outline, available here. We kindly request that you read the outline and respond to the questions below. Your feedback is instrumental in ensuring that the guidance is as practical as possible and grounded in national experiences.
1) Country Experiences
How has the Paris Agreement and the (I)NDC process catalyzed progress on climate action in your country? What are the key areas in which your country will need support or guidance as you prepare for NDC implementation?
2) Scope of the Outline:
Does the draft outline for the NDC implementation guidance reflect the key areas identified above? What other thematic areas (if any) would you suggest including to make the guidance as practical as possible for countries in the process of preparing for NDC implementation?
2) Additional Suggestions:
Based on your professional experience (and experience in using Designing and Preparing INDCs, if applicable), what suggestions would you have for ensuring that the NDC implementation guidance is concrete yet applicable to a wide spectrum of countries, stakeholders, and types of NDCs?
Dear colleagues: Phase 1 has officially closed and we will post a summary shortly. Meanwhile, please join our discussion on institutional arrangements, engagement and awareness raising here: https://www.unteamworks.org/NDCimplementation/Phase2
I would like to thank everyone who took the time to participate in the first phase of our e-discussion. It has been extremely interesting to hear of the impressive work in developing countries, as well as suggestions for how to improve and structure the NDC guidance document.
Country experiences
One of our main objectives was learning how the Paris Agreement and the (I)NDC process had catalyzed climate action in countries, and what support was still needed in preparing for NDC implementation. Representatives from Moldova, Brazil, Guatemala, Ecuador, Colombia, Lebanon and Uganda shared their thoughts and I highly recommend that you read their very insightful examples, if you have not done so already. Both Lebanon and Ecuador have prepared high-level roadmaps for NDC implementation – you can find Ecuador’s (in Spanish) here: https://www.unteamworks.org/bitcache/df25824a72f9312189faba0459b38a1d52c6e14e?vid=591723&nid=537701&parent_vid=591454.
It was clear from the examples provided that developing countries put a lot of effort into preparing their INDCs – undertaking extensive stakeholder consultations and drawing upon existing climate change policies, strategies and legal frameworks, as well as adaptation and mitigation actions and strategies, to define their NDC vision and/or targets. The National Communications were also a key resource.
There was general agreement that the INDC design process and subsequent Paris Agreement had provided momentum and given a higher level of priority to climate change in national governments, although it was noted that more than goodwill is needed to sustain these efforts – namely, mechanisms by which to truly enforce laws and targets. Another key benefit identified was that the INDC served to bring together a range of national climate change efforts into a more comprehensive single vision.
Scope and content of the NDC implementation guidance
In addition to the country representatives listed above, we also received comments from Ricardo-AEA, World Bank and GIZ on the proposed outline for the UNDP/WRI/UNEP/DTU NDC implementation guidance document. Overall, the proposed outline resonated with reviewers. It was noted that while the document would need to be generic to be applicable to a wider number of countries, including detail was important in order to the document to be really useful.
Several commenters were curious as to whether mitigation and adaptation would be treated separately, noting the importance of adaptation as a priority issue in many developing countries. The interplay between political, technical and stakeholder participation processes was also highlighted as important for raising ambition. Other recommendations included: how to link NDCs to the sustainable development agenda; including indicators of quality or progress, as well as potential corrective measures that could be used if not meeting targets; and including a toolbox of financial tools and approaches.
Ricardo-AEA also shared the quick-start guide to planning for NDC implementation that was developed in collaboration with CDKN: http://www.cdkn.org/ndc-guide/