From reporting to payments: Current state and trends of REDD+ reporting to the UNFCCC - #GFOI2020 Series Webinar #6

Date: 28 October

Time: 14:00-15:00 CET

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Watch the video recording here.

GFOI partner the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is organizing a webinar to examine the current state and trends of REDD+ reporting (*)  to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Objectives

• Highlight the important progress on REDD+ reporting to the UNFCCC
• Reflect on quality of UNFCCC-reported REDD+ results and their ability to underpin results-based payments
• Jointly think about likely future development of REDD+ reporting
• Launch the paper “From reference levels to results reporting: REDD+ under the UNFCCC – 2020 update”

Agenda

Why do countries dedicate their efforts to reporting their REDD+ results to the UNFCCC? How can they further improve their data quality and will their efforts be rewarded with results-based payments? These are some of the questions that will be addressed by the speakers during this webinar, which includes representatives of REDD+ countries, GCF, NICFI and other GFOI partners.

• Margaret Athieno Mwebesa, National REDD+ Focal Point, Uganda
• Ellen Bruzelius-Backer, Policy Director, Norway’s International Climate and Forest Initiative (NICFI)
• Juan Chang, Principal Forest and Land Use Specialist, Green Climate Fund (GCF)
• Peter Iversen, Team Lead (AFOLU unit), United National Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 
• Alfred Rungol, General Manager MRV, Papua New Guinea

Summary of the discussions

We have learned that many dedicated partners and countries are committed to reduce forest emissions for climate action. Excellent progresses have been made at national level in reporting, with 50 countries submitting their forest reference emission levels to the UNFCCC for independent and transparent review.

Countries are striving for improving the quality of the data, using more robust methods and accurate sample-based approaches, in line with the recommendations from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the GFOI Methods and Guidance Documentation (MGD 3.0). The new opportunity offered by Norway to use freely available resolution mosaics of tropical land masses will be key to improving forest monitoring, including for reducing uncertainties of estimates.

It was great also to hear that national forest monitoring systems are being used to strengthen forest management and forest policy. However, it is clear that countries' participation in REDD+ reporting requires significant efforts and that to remain engaged countries need to continue accessing the multiple benefits from the process. Funding opportunities for country payments are still available, but there is a need for further partners to commit, and private finance can play an important role.

Resources

• From reference levels to results reporting: REDD+ under the UNFCCC – 2020 update
• From reference levels to results reporting: REDD+ under the UNFCCC – 2019 update

#GFOI2020 webinar series

This appointment is the sixth of the #GFOI2020 webinar series organized in lieu of the GFOI 2020 Plenary, which was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Contacts

For more information, please contact [email protected]

(*) Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries, and the role of conservation, sustainable management of forests, and enhancement of forest carbon stocks in developing countries.