ECO senses that Parties got stuck in the narrative: “it’s not that we don’t trust you… but” and haven’t been able to get past the “but.”
How can we can move towards more ambition if there is no trust among parties?
ECO believes that a common sense of trust is the only way that parties will be able to move forward, toward a successful COP23.
At COP18, developed countries were asked to submit information, alongside their strategies and approaches, on how they intended to respect their commitment of scaling up finance to reach the US$100 billion per year goal by 2020. The following year, they agreed to communicate bi-annual ex-ante qualitative and quantitative information on how they would provide funds from 2014 to 2020, further confirmed in 2015 via Article 9.5 of the Paris Agreement.
In Marrakech, Parties were asked to identify as many possible matters related to the implementation of the work programme of the Paris Agreement they thought were not properly addressed — one of which was Article 9.5 of the Paris Agreement.
In Paris, under COP, all countries agreed “to initiate, at its twenty-second session, a process to identify the information in accordance with Article 9.5 of the Paris Agreement’’. The mandate under the APA is clearer; it reflects on the creation of possible modalities to communicate this information. ECO has notices the issue, under the APA and under COP, is not moving forwards.
Countries in need of support need to know what financing they can count on. Essentially, it’s a ‘’let me know what you’ll provide and I’ll be able to tell you what more I can do, beyond what I already have planned’’.
To ensure predictability, a process needs to be established allowing developed countries to provide quantified estimates. Such a process needs to be discussed and agreed upon. ECO wonders why developed countries are afraid of speaking about this properly. After all, transparency is in everyone’s interests.
ECO would like to propose one way forward. The APA could recommend to the COP that the APA takes the COP Item 10f and be mandated to work on the modalities.
Then, this COP item would be closed and under one single item parties would discuss about the information and the modalities to be provided under Article 9.5 of the Paris Agreement.
