Report of the twenty-fourth meeting of the Joint Implementation Supervisory Committee

Report of the twenty-fourth meeting of the Joint Implementation Supervisory Committee

Please be informed that the report of the twenty-fourth meeting of the Joint Implementation Supervisory Committee (23-25 March 2011), including its annexes, is available on
the UNFCCC JI website. Please refer to
<http://ji.unfccc.int/Sup_Committee/Meetings/index.html>.

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Management plan and resources for the work on joint implementation
Annex 1: Work plan for the Joint Implementation Supervisory Committee work plan for 2011–2013
Annex 2: Joint implementation management plan for 2011
Other matters
Annex 3: Provisions for charging of fees to cover administrative costs relating to the activities of the Joint Implementation Supervisory Committee and its supporting structures (version 04)
Annex 4: Tentative calendar of meetings of the Joint Implementation Supervisory Committee and the Joint Implementation Accreditation Panel in 2011 (version 02)
Annex 5: Provisional agenda of the twenty-fifth meeting of the Joint Implementation Supervisory Committee

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Highlights -- Joint Implementation Supervisory Committee, 24th meeting
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Bonn, 25 March 2011 -– In its first meeting of the year, the Joint Implementation Supervisory Committee (JISC) agreed on a three-year work plan and detailed management plan for 2011, together with a new fee structure, designed to ensure the mechanism’s continued usefulness as a tool to mitigate climate change.

“The joint implementation mechanism is recognized as a useful tool to incentivize investment in emission reduction projects. Our main challenge lately has been financial. The new fee structure gives us the breathing room to fully focus our attention on the functioning of the mechanism, and it gives industry and government the confidence to increase their participation in JI,” said the JISC’s new Chair, Mr. Muhammed Quamrul Chowdhury of Bangladesh. Mr. Chowdhury takes over from Benoît Leguet of France.

The JISC, which verifies emission reductions under so-called Track 2 JI, struggled in 2010 under severe funding constraints, the result of lower than expected participation, and, as a result, lower than expected fees to support the work of the body. In Cancun in December 2010, Parties to the Kyoto Protocol asked the JISC to come up with a fee structure that draws fees from JI Track 1, under which project emission reductions are verified by hosting countries. The decision by Parties was not the only hopeful sign for JI. The year also saw Russia approve its first JI projects. The country has the potential to host a very large number of projects.

“This mechanism is evolving and continually improving. That is translating into a growing number of projects. Our focus is to make JI the best possible mechanism it can be for incentivizing investment to mitigate climate change now and into the future, beyond 2012. One of the key challenges this year for the JISC will be to provide a proposal to countries on what a new JI mechanism can look like after 2012,” said Mr. Wolfgang Seidel, who was chosen to serve as Vice-Chair in 2011. He takes over from Mr. Chowdhury.

In Cancun, the JISC presented a comprehensive document detailing lessons learned in implementing JI, together with numerous recommendations designed to ensure the health of the mechanism. The document was well received by Parties, who replied with guidance, including the go-ahead on a revised fee structure and a request that JISC continue to work to further enhance the functioning of JI.

Mr. Benoît Leguet and Mr. Carlos Fuller were elected as Chair and Vice-Chair, respectively, of the Committee’s Accreditation Panel.