19 September 2017: UNFCCC Secretariat has published a number of reports in accordance with the current transparency system of the UNFCCC. These include: reports on the individual review of Parties’ annual submissions; technical analyses of the first biennial update reports (BURs); a report on the review of the report to facilitate the calculation of the assigned amount for the Kyoto Protocol’s second commitment period (CP2) of Portugal; and a report on the technical assessment of the proposed forest reference emission level (FREL) of Ethiopia. The Kyoto Protocol Compliance Committee convened for its 19th meeting.

Three Review Reports of Annex I Parties Released

All UNFCCC Annex I Parties are required to submit an annual greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory covering their emissions and removals of GHG emissions. Annex I Parties that are also Parties to the Kyoto Protocol are required to provide supplementary information. In accordance with decision 13/CP.20, the UNFCCC Secretariat is required to prepare a status report within three weeks of receiving a Party’s GHG inventory. The status report forms part of an initial assessment that aims to ensure each Annex I Party submits a consistent, complete and timely annual inventory in the correct format.

The annual report of the Compliance Committee to the CMP includes a summary of the further consideration by the Enforcement Branch of the questions of implementation with regard to compliance by Ukraine, consideration by the Facilitative Branch of its role in providing advice and facilitation, and discussions of the plenary of the Compliance Committee.

Following the completion of a status report, the Expert Review Team (ERT) prepares individual reviews of the submissions, which assess whether information provided in the inventories is complete and consistent with guidelines. The individual review provides additional information gathered through subsequent discussions with the submitting Party. The reviews also contribute to improving the quality of inventories over time, and contain a section stating previous recommendations to improve the inventories and how each has been followed up on, as well as a section on additional findings.

The UNFCCC has released three reports on the individual reviews of the annual submissions of: Portugal, submitted in 2015 (FCCC/ARR/2015/PRT) and 2016 (FCCC/ARR/2016/PRT); and the Russian Federation, submitted in 2016 (FCCC/ARR/2016/RUS). [Review Report of Portugal 2015, Portugal 2016, and Russian Federation 2016]

ERTs Assess CP2 Assigned Amounts Calculation for Portugal

In accordance with decision 2/CMP.8, Parties with a quantified emission limitation and reduction commitment inscribed in the third column of Annex B to the Kyoto Protocol are required to submit a report to facilitate the calculation of their assigned amount for CP2. The assigned amount will then be the allowed amount of emissions for that Party for CP2. Following the submission of these reports from Parties, each report undergoes a review by an ERT, in line with the Guidelines for Review under Article 8 of the Kyoto Protocol. The UNFCCC has published a report on the review of the report to facilitate the calculation of the assigned amount for CP2 for Portugal (FCCC/IRR/2016/PRT). [Review Report for Portugal]

Technical Analysis Reports Relating to BURs of Jamaica and Malaysia

The UNFCCC Secretariat has published a summary report on the technical analysis of Jamaica’ s first BUR (FCCC/SBI/ICA/2017/TASR.1/JAM). The technical analysis, conducted by a team of technical experts (TTE), is one of two steps to the international consultation and analysis (ICA) process.

ICA is the verification part of the measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) system for developing country Parties under the Convention. The TTE prepares a summary report for each BUR in consultation with the Party. Following the publication of the summary report, a facilitative sharing of views (FSV) takes place in the form of a workshop under the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI). Each report indicates whether all elements in the ICA guidelines have been included in the country’s BUR and if explanations or additional information has been furnished on missing elements during consultations with the Party. The reports also analyze the information presented in the BUR, comparing it to, for example, previous GHG calculations, and how the Party is advancing its ability to transparently and accurately report the relevant information. The TTE and the Party also identify the country’s priority capacity-building needs for reporting. [Technical Analysis of the BUR of Jamaica]

The UNFCCC has also released a technical report covering the technical analysis of the technical annex submitted by Malaysia in its first BUR on the activity “sustainable management of forests” (FCCC/SBI/ICA/2016/TATR.1/MYS). The report contains technical analysis findings and recommends a few areas for further technical improvement, according to decision 14/CP.19, paragraph 14. [Technical Analysis of the Technical Annex of the BUR of Malaysia]

UNFCCC Publishes Technical Assessment of Ethiopia’s Proposed FREL

On 7 September 2017, the UNFCCC Secretariat published its report on the technical assessment of the proposed FREL for Ethiopia in 2016 (FCCC/TAR/2016/ETH). The report states that the information used by Ethiopia in constructing its FREL and Forest Reference Level (FRL) for deforestation and enhancement of forest stocks is mostly transparent, complete and in overall accordance with the guidelines contained in the annex to decision 12/CP.17. The report commends Ethiopia for showing strong commitment to the continuous improvement of its FREL/FRL estimates, in line with the stepwise approach, and suggests several areas for future technical improvements. [Report on the Technical Assessment of the Proposed FREL for Ethiopia in 2016]

Compliance Committee Convenes, Releases Annual Report

The Compliance Committee to the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP) met in Bonn, Germany, from 7-8 September 2017, for the 19th meeting of the plenary of the Compliance Committee. During the same period, also in Bonn, the 20th meeting of the Compliance Committee’ s Facilitative Branch took place on 7 September. Its Enforcement Branch convened for its 30th meeting from 6-7 September.

Following the meetings, the annual report of the Compliance Committee to the CMP was published (FCCC/KP/CMP/2017/4), outlining the activities of the Facilitative and Enforcement Branches over the past year. Included in the report is a summary of the further consideration by the Enforcement Branch of the questions of implementation with regard to compliance by Ukraine, consideration by the Facilitative Branch of its role in providing advice and facilitation, and discussions of the plenary of the Compliance Committee. [Nineteenth Meeting of the Plenary of the Compliance Committee] [Annual Report of the Compliance Committee to the CMP]