A “Rethink and Redesign” of UNFCCC Review Process

How should the UNFCCC support effective and efficient reviews of future biennial transparency reports (BTR) for all Parties”? We discuss this question in this first publication in a discussion paper series on critical capacity-building challenges for Paris Agreement implementation.

Challenges and Proposed Reforms to the UNFCCC Expert Review Process for the Enhanced Transparency Framework

Authors: Lisa Hanle, Michael Gillenwater, Tinus Pulles, and Klaus Radunsky

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Summary

Transparency is the bedrock of the Paris Agreement (PA), including the assessment of that information by qualified experts to ensure consistency with international requirements. Review processes in one form or another have been underway within the UNFCCC for over 20 years. The PA’s Enhanced Transparency Framework introduces a dramatic increase in the scale of review under the UNFCCC process, as it involves several major changes. Because of these changes, simply building on what has been done for the review process in the past is unlikely to succeed. Instead, we argue that it is necessary to “rethink and redesign” a process to support effective and efficient reviews of biennial transparency reports (BTR) for all Parties. This paper presents a road map for building on the best of the current UNFCCC review processes and then identifies solutions to address the most important challenges faced by Parties, the UNFCCC secretariat, and review experts to establish a functioning ETF review process.

This series is produced by the Coalition on Paris Agreement Capacity Building, a small circle of champions with extensive experience in international capacity building and deep expertise in MRV. The Coalition is diverse in terms of nationality, languages, gender, and backgrounds. The group researches and promotes evidence-based capacity building strategies and innovative activities that are at a scale to commensurate with the challenge of global climate change.