EGTT recommendations

Working group I

(Bernard and Rawleston)

(a) To review the progress made and effectiveness in the implementation of activities identified under each key theme of the framework;

(b) To identify gaps and barriers and suggest ways and means to better facilitate and advance the implementation of the framework;

  1. TNAs:
  • Achievements
  • Some 86 developing countries received top-up funds for conducting their National Communication. XX of them decided to conduct TNAs.
  • UNDP, UNEP, CTI support
  • 23 TNAs posted on TT:CLEAR
  • Para. 6 - ask UNDP - LDCs special circumstances
  • Workshop organized and development of a handbook on Conducting technology needs assessments for clime change. While the handbook was useful to assist countries to conduct TNAs it is not very useful for developing projects
  • Gaps and barriers - effectiveness
  • Adequacy of financial resources for conducting TNAs
  • Formulation of the purpose (para. 4) is a barrier to effectiveness of TNAs
  • [Identified in the UNDP analysis?]
  • Implementation plans remain a challenge for TNAs
  • The handbook will be complemented by the practitioner’s guide
  • Recommendations
  • Improve the definition? - [TNAs should focus on scoping the needs - identify the problem and the technologies to solve this problems]
  1. Technology information
  • Achievements
  • Developed a search engine
  • Inventory of technologies ? - connection to existing databases with ESTs
  • Developed TT:CLEAR and conducted a client survey - results under implementation
  • Workshop organized
  • Pilot technology information network (SANet, Clean Energy Canada, US CTC Gateway + 3 centers in developing countries)
  • Gaps and barriers
  • Low access to information by users in developing countries - implementing results of the survey to enhance this access
  • [Refer to barriers identified in the survey document]
  1. Enabling environments
  • Achievements
  • Organized a workshop
  • Prepared a technical paper (FCCC/TP/2002/2)
  • Organized a senior-level round table discussion
  • Organized a workshop-special event in cooperation with private sector involvement
  • Prepared a working paper on Overview of IPR practices and other issues associated with publicly-funded activities
  • Provide guidance/advice on creating a landscape favorable to technology development and transfer
  • Synthesis reports of national communications (Annex I and non-Annex I)
  • Gaps and barriers
  • Be more aggressive in providing this advice (make known what we do) - Parties attention to the advice that was provided
  • Lack of integrating climate change and enabling environments for development and transfer of technology into policy making (national level, linking with other fora)
  1. Capacity building
  • Achievements
  • Technical paper
  • Regional workshops organized by CTI on TNAs
  • [Documents prepared under 2/CP.7 and 3/CP.7]
  • GEF activities under OP5, OP6, OP7 and OP11 include CB
  • CB is crosscutting (TNAs - 18(h), TI - 18(e), enabling environments, innovative financing - 18(b), technologies for adaptation) and was addressed under these themes of the framework
  • Gaps and barriers
  • [Some actives addressed to a lesser extent from para. 18 and 19]
  1. Mechanisms
  • Achievements
  • EGTT met 10 times in regular meetings and X times in special meetings

(e) To consider possible medium- and long-term strategies for enhancing the implementation of the framework for meaningful and effective actions to enhance the implementation of Article 4, paragraph 5, of the Convention, including issues associated with the medium and long-term planning of the work of the EGTT

(g) To recommend possible revision of the key themes in the existing framework based on the outcomes detailed above.

Continue with EGTT after 2006?

  • Comment on our own existence - conflict of interest?
  • Observer - atmosphere good for constructive discussions - a forum to talks about it and produce products
  • Build understanding on issues and each member brings this to its group
  • Define first what are the issues and then decide if EGTT is the best vehicle
  • The group had evolved and focused on concrete outputs. At this particular junction - consider ways to grow the experience we had and improve the body for the future - work with CGE, invite experts to join workshops

Mid- and long-term

  • Refers to planning until 2012. Long term is beyond 2012.
  • EGTT mandate should be changed to allow for mid/long term planning.
  • Mid-term - continue with the framework and strengthen the EGTT
  • Look at the existing framework and see if responded to the mandate (4.5). How to expand the discussion to other relevant articles of the Convention and Kyoto Protocol
  • The framework is week in making the link to implementation
  • More cognizant to what is happening in other fora (e.g., G8 plan of action - do not work in isolation and bring results to this for a - IEA, World Bank, EU).
  • Encourage joint R&D - look at development needs for example in Africa and find partners
  • In all 5 themes - the support for the process is through mechanisms - will implement the framework - therefore expand EGTT (e.g., bring in other important actors - financial institutions as permanent members). Not restricted to this type of membership.
  • We should consider DD&D not only tech. transfer
  • Get input from relevant institutions, including regional development banks (e.g., water, agriculture)
  • Long term:
  • More interesting and attractive - CDM role model - create investment perspectives such as those under CDM? An agreement (Protocol) under the Convention to make TT attractive. Parties that contribute to transfer get credits and thus are engaged or engage private sector as in CDM (give certain amount of CER to the private sector that is making the transfer) - caution: this type of recommendation can be out of the mandate for reviewing the framework?

Revision of key themes

  • Clarity on what EGTT should address and what is for the Parties
  • EE is a difficult theme - we listed a number of items but we do not have control on them. Would require more effort to address them in the Convention process - to what extent we can ensure that it will be done? How we measure? What are the indicators? Is it enough if it is stated in the national communication?
  • Sometimes there is a tendency to avoid measuring progress - CBD framework can be an example
  • Defining indicators in such a broad topic will not be easy (link indicators to Parties or to instruments in developing and developed countries?) - such indicators may include, in addition to financial flows, enabling environments, IPR regime, etc. A sectoral discussion will simplify this discussion (true for mitigation but more difficult for adaptation)
  • Technology is core for mitigation and adaptation activities
  • Investment flows can be used as a proxy for technology transfer? (short term: improve communication - a paper on investment flows could be useful to the consideration of technology transfer but was not known to the group)
  • We can still work with the existing themes
  • One new theme - technology cooperation and development (partnership) - Asia and the Pacific can serve as a model. What are the critical area where technology can de developed - addressing problems on the ground
  • More a bottom up approach - building replication opportunities in project proposals - establish a technology cooperation at that level and make a project proposal more attractive
  • Top-down: Ghana, Burkina Faso, etc working in cooperation with Canada (regional, sub-regional cooperation). This can be much more than climate change (e.g., SADAC) but we are only looking to technology.
  • It is subsumed under capacity building in the current framework - we may only need to bring it up.
  • EE and CB may need an in-depth review - how to do it? Suggest to SBSTA 24 to continue to work on these themes but continue to review them. What SBSTA can do? - ask for submissions? Annex I Parties are reporting in NCs. Core group to look to all relevant documents and develop bullet points on these themes.
  • Message to SBSTA 23 - we begun working and conduced a scoping exercise - is an extensive exercise

Summary

  • Definition of mid- and long-term
  • Some ideas on where the present way or working in EGTT is limiting ourselves (e.g., composition)
  • Suggestions for 5 years (mid-term)
  • Look at monitoring development and transfer of technologies
  • Are comfortable with the 5 key themes but there is a suggestion to focus on technology cooperation (6 key theme or a sub-theme)
  • We should work more in detail on the EE and CB based on the framework but also on the insides we developed on the problems and the technical papers and other documentation we have
  • Should come to a firm planning for the coming weeks and months to deliver a credible document by SBSTA 24
  • In the Chair’s report for SBSTA 23 we can report our commitment to produce the report for SBSTA 24 (reference the substantive scoping exercise conducted at this meeting, better perception on where we need to focus)