PAC-4/Doc 3, Draft 1, p. 4

Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS) / PAC-4/Doc. 3
PARTNER ADVISORY COMMITTEE / Submitted by: / Secretariat
Date: / 02.II.2016
FOURTH SESSION
Geneva, Switzerland, 11-12 February 2016 / Original Language: / English
Status: / Draft 1

Agenda Item 3: review of the decisions of the management committee of the intergovernmental board on climate services (ibcs)

SUMMARY

DECISIONS/ACTIONS REQUIRED:

Review the decisions of the third session of the management Committee of the IBCS and discuss their implications for the implementation of the GFCS.

CONTENT OF DOCUMENT:

The Table of Contents is available only electronically as a Document Map[*].

APPENDIX A: DRAFT TEXT FOR INCLUSION IN THE GENERAL SUMMARY

3. review of the decisions of the management committee (MC) of the ibcs

3.1 At its third session in October 2015, the IBCS MC took the following decisions, of direct relevance to the Partner Advisory Committee and its members:

ENERGY EXEMPLAR

The Management Committee recalled Resolution 63 (Cg–17) – Energy as an additional priority area of the Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS) – and acknowledged the progress made with the development of the Energy Exemplar, recognized the role of energy in supporting the initial four priority areas of the GFCS and a low carbon development path.
The Committee decided:

o  To adopt Energy as an integral part of the User Interface Platform of the GFCS,

o  To implement the Energy Exemplar as a means of enhancing provision of climate services for the energy priority area and engaging relevant stakeholders,

o  To design interventions in the selected countries with the support of the PAC and IBCS Members.

The Committee urged IBCS Members to be actively involved in the implementation of the Energy Exemplar and to consider providing additional resources so that efforts towards the energy priority area will not hinder or compete with the early progress of the four initial priority areas.

The Committee invited the PAC members to engage in, and support, the implementation of the Exemplar and its selected flagship projects by seconding experts on energy or by providing financial resources to the GFCS Trust Fund. The Committee further invited the PAC Members to seek partnerships with relevant stakeholders that would enhance implementation of the Energy Exemplar and invited GFCS Partners to support the further development of the Exemplar.

The Committee requested the Director of the GFCS Office to inform the GFCS partners through their accredited representatives in the IBCS Partner Advisory Committee of its decision.

OPERATIONAL AND RESOURCE PLAN FOR THE GFCS FOR THE PERIOD 2015 - 2018

The Committee recognized the need for an operational and resource plan (ORP) that outlines achievable goals by 2018, bearing in mind the Implementation Plan of the Global Framework for Climate Services, its Annexes and Exemplars, and the Monitoring and Evaluation Process (see IBCS-MC3/Doc. 6.2). The Committee, among others:

·  Approved Part I of the ORP, including the proposed objectives and structure, requesting revisions to the executive summary, activity plans, and budget.

·  Agreed the work of the Task Team on Operational and Resources Plan needs to continue and should be reconvened to prioritize the proposed activities, ensure the development of core capacities are responding to user-needs, ensure that duplications in efforts between Operational and Resources Plan activities and other key initiatives are mapped and managed, and that the document is shortened and streamlined. It further noted the need reframe the messages of the Operational and Resource Plan focusing on benefits and impacts that investments will result in; focus Part II of the Operational and Resources Plan on the funding gaps from existing funding streams; and Part III on resource mobilization to focus on articulating how the GFCS fills existing gaps and enhances other related initiatives and programmes.

The Committee also decided to:

o  Approve the Operational and Resource Plan for the GFCS for the period 2015-2018,

o  Implement the Operational and Resource Plan for the GFCS for the period 2015-2018,

o  Update the Operational and Resource Plan for the GFCS for the period 2015-2018 at each Management Committee meeting building on lessons drawn from its implementation in particular through the Monitoring and Evaluation Process.

The Committee expressed the wish that Executive Heads of the GFCS Partners be informed of its decisions and that they facilitate its implementation and follow-up actions.

MONITORING AND EVALUATION OF IMPLEMENTATION OF THE GFCS
The Committee recognized the need for the implementation of the GFCS to be supported by an effective monitoring and evaluation process and methodology, bearing in mind the Implementation Plan of the Global Framework for Climate Services, its Annexes and Exemplars. The Committee among others:

·  Highlighted the need for a targeted call for secondment of experts on monitoring and evaluation that could provide the expertise for the work needed on monitoring and evaluation;

·  Called for a mid-term review of the GFCS to be conducted at the beginning of the second phase of implementation of the GFCS. The review could help in providing guidance on how to improve implementation of the GFCS and measure success of the activities implemented. The task team on the monitoring and evaluation could propose a framework for the mid-term review, based on experiences from other reviews, to be considered by members of the Management Committee attending the next meeting of the Executive Council;

·  Noted the need to expand the terms of reference of the task team to provide indicators of impact for the activities being implemented by the GFCS, particularly in the priority areas. The membership of the task team should be further expanded to PAC members;

The Committee also decided:

o  To approve the monitoring and evaluation process and methodology for implementation of the GFCS;

o  To implement the monitoring and evaluation process and methodology;

o  To update the monitoring and evaluation process and methodology for implementation of the GFCS regularly building on lessons drawn from its implementation.

The Committee invited partner organizations to apply the monitoring and evaluation process and methodology to monitor and evaluate GFCS-related projects and activities they implement or contribute to and requested the Director of the GFCS Office to inform the GFCS partners through their accredited representatives in the IBCS Partner Advisory Committee of its decision.

GFCS AND THE 2030 AGENDA FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

White paper development: Procedure and Timeline

The Committee recognized the value of developing such a white paper in close collaboration with the GFCS partners. They will have to coordinate their efforts, especially at national level to be in a position to better serve the SDGs implementation. The IBCS Partners Advisory Committee (PAC) will thus have a key role to play in this regard to gear GFCS implementation to support the 2030 development agenda.

The committee decided that a first version of this white paper should be available mid-2016, with a view to provide it for consideration to all GFCS partner Executive Heads and constituencies, as much as feasible, before consideration and possible adoption by the Management Committee. It requested the GFCS Office to exploit all possibilities for a constructive interaction between the Management Committee members and the PAC, within available resources.

To this effect, the Management Committee requested the GFCS Office to ensure that the PAC will be provided with a draft of the first version of the white paper for its consideration and possible endorsement at its February 2016 meeting. This draft should be at a strategic level and only focus on the input of the GFCS priority areas to the SDGs, and in particular the ones which have a direct linkage with those as mentioned in 7.5.6.

Bearing in mind that the GFCS is a framework for action as are the outcomes of the several international conferences mentioned in 7.5.3, the Management Committee also stressed the need for the white paper to inform and ensure coherence with the other dimensions of the GFCS, in particular its resource mobilization strategy supported by the GFCS communication strategy and Operations and Resource Plan (ORP). It requested the GFCS Office to ensure that the Task Teams in charge of further work on the ORP and the M&E development be consulted and that their comments be included in the version of the white paper.

Next steps

The Management Committee decided that the first version of the white paper should be considered by the Management Committee as soon as possible It requested the IBCS Chair, in consultation with the GFCS Office and the Secretary-General, as per Resolution 1 (IBCS-1), to organize a session of members of the Management Committee, preferably immediately before or after the WMO Executive Council. Given the important role of the PAC in the development of the first draft of the white paper the Management Committee furthermore decided to invite the PAC members to its next session. The invitation is made on the terms included in paragraphs 10 – 13 of Resolution 1 (IBCS-1).

COMMUNICATION STRATEGY
No specific decisions of direct relevance to the meeting. However, the meeting may wish to reflect on the effective appropriateness, relevance and use of communication material developed in support of the GFCS implementation.

SPECIFIC DATA REQUIREMENTS FOR THE GFCS

In light of these developments (e.g. the decision by the Seventeenth World Meteorological Congress to adopt Resolution 60 (Cg-17), the WMO Policy on the International Exchange of Climate Data and Products to Support the Implementation of the GFCS) , and of the need to further define the data and products needed for GFCS implementation, the Management Committee decided to establish an Expert Team on Specific Data Requirements for the GFCS with terms of reference as provided in the Annex to this paragraph.

The Committee urged IBCS Members to contribute experts and information to the Expert Team and to otherwise facilitate its work. It invited:

o  Members of the IBCS PAC to contribute experts and information to the Expert Team.

o  Members of the IBCS PAC to provide plans for the free and unrestricted exchange of their relevant data and products in support of implementation, including relevant policies and practices governing their exchange;

o  The Global Climate Observing System Steering Committee and Group on Earth Observations Executive Committee to share information concerning how requirements for GFCS relevant data and products can be met through their activities.

The Committee requested the Director of the GFCS Office to inform the GFCS partners through their accredited representatives in the IBCS Partner Advisory Committee of its decision.

The Committee noted that in considering data requirements for the GFCS data policies of data sources should be duly respected.

The Committee requested that the Terms of Reference of the expert team be adjusted to reflect the scope of the work to be carried out and membership of the expert team be expanded accordingly. The Committee recommends for the expert team to meet in early 2016.

A review group comprised of members of the Management Committee attending the Executive Council should provide support to the work of the expert team by reviewing the outputs of its work and providing the required guidance.

3.2 The meeting acknowledged the progress made on those several streams of work. It stresses in particular:

·  Successes: ………..

·  Elements to be improved: ………….

3.3 In view of the above, the meeting decided to:

[Comment: ...... ]

ANNEX to paragraph 3.1

EXPERT TEAM ON SPECIFIC DATA REQUIREMENTS FOR THE GFCS

TERMS OF REFERENCE

Taking into account the outcomes of the Seventeenth World Meteorological Congress, including adoption of the WMO policy for international exchange of climate data and products to support the implementation of the GFCS and a request to the Intergovernmental Board on Climate Services to make recommendations concerning the GFCS relevant data and products under the auspices of WMO needed to contribute to the Framework, and the decision by the Sixty-seventh Executive Council to establish a Task Team on Data Policy and Emerging Issues, the Expert Team shall undertake work in the following areas:

(1) Undertake a review of GFCS implementation requirements with respect to data and products developed or acquired under WMO auspices:

(a) Review and summarize requirements identified in the GFCS Implementation Plan, its annexes and exemplars;

(b) Consult with members of the GFCS Partners Advisory Committee (PAC) with respect to :

1. Additional and emerging data needs for implementation of the exemplars,

2. PAC member policies and practices regarding free and unrestricted exchange of GFCS relevant data and products related to their areas of work;

(c) Monitor on-going data requirements emerging from the implementation of the GFCS at country level, and in particular in the countries identified by PAC for comprehensive support by PAC members;

(2) Prepare a synthesis and recommendations regarding:

(a) needs which are currently satisfied by data already included in the annex to Resolution 60 (Cg-17) and the related resolutions identified in it;

(b) any unmet data requirements and make recommendations concerning priority requirements and data sources, the latter including through consultation with the Global Climate Observing System and the Group on Earth Observations;

(c) the status of PAC member policies and practices with respect to the free and unrestricted exchange of GFCS relevant data and products;

(3) Prepare a report to the Intergovernmental Board on Climate Services Management Committee for consideration at its fourth session and subsequent sessions as necessary.

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