15 October 2018: The presiding officers of the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Paris Agreement (APA), the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) and the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) have prepared a joint reflections note in advance of the 24th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 24) to the UNFCCC in Katowice, Poland, in December 2018. The note provides reflections on the way forward, including textual proposals, to help advance balanced consideration of all elements of the Paris Agreement work programme (PAWP).

The document aims to ensure the PAWP process is in the “best possible shape” to ensure a successful outcome in Katowice.

In the preparation of textual proposals on each of the APA agenda items, contained in the nine addenda to the reflections note, the presiding officers were guided by the following principles:

• the substantive content of the textual proposals reflects the contents of the Bangkok outcome, remains Party-owned and aims to advance an agreed outcome at Katowice;
• all options identified in the Bangkok outcome remain on the table and no substantive concepts have been inserted or deleted;
• in some cases, suggestions of the presiding officers are included for consideration alongside the existing options; and
• the textual proposals are not intended to prejudge the outcome of deliberations but, rather, to offer “a sense of direction” towards the outcome.

The addenda are available on the UNFCCC documents portal.

Regarding organization of the session, the note states that, in order to increase coherence and consistency in the work of the subsidiary bodies, the presiding officers will:

• convene joint pre-sessional consultations with groups, as appropriate;
• hold joint open and closing SBSTA-SBI-APA plenaries to hear statements from groups, Parties and observers;
• ensure that negotiations are facilitated or chaired by co-facilitators or co-chairs;
• seek to allocate the same number of hours of negotiating time to each PAWP agenda item;
• hold regular meetings of presiding officers to align PAWP work as needed; and
• convene joint stocktaking meetings, if necessary.

The APA 1-7, SBSTA 49 and SBI 49 will meet in Katowice from 2-8 December, while the COP will meet through 14 December. The Katowice Climate Change Conference will also include the 14th session of the COP serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP 14) and the third part of the first session of the COP serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA 1-3). [Joint Reflections Note] [SDG Knowledge Hub Story on Draft Provisional Agendas for COP 24]