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Monitoring and tracking long-term finance to support climate action

2pm, July 31st, 2015

The paper, Monitoring and tracking long-term finance to support climate action, highlights the relevant information that needs to be tracked in order to build a comprehensive measure, report and verification (MRV) system for climate finance, proposing both improvements to current reporting and tracking systems as well as new reporting approaches for a more robust and inclusive MRV system.

The Cancún Agreements formalize a collective commitment by developed countries to provide new and additional funding for action on climate change in developing countries both in the short- and longer-term. The funding will aim to help developing countries adapt to and address the impacts of climate change and to pursue actions that will bring them towards a low carbon future.

This collective financial commitment requires a system to measure, report and verify (MRV) the relevant financial flows across a variety of sources. Such a system should help assess – individually and collectively – whether or not commitments are being met, and to facilitate the implementation of these commitments by identifying where progress could be made. Ideally, such a system should ensure transparency and accountability.

The paper suggests tracking information along a multi-dimensional structure. This structure is aspirational, to be achieved and added to over time. Certain elements of it might not be feasible in the near term but could be developed with a targeted effort. For example, while not a priority in the near-term it is important to recognize the growing importance of South-South financial flows to support climate action and to anticipate adding reporting on this in future. Of course such a system must also be built up slowly, allowing reporting countries to build capacity to provide higher quality and more complete information over time.

Read  Monitoring and tracking long-term finance to support climate action.

Institutions Involved

  • Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and International Energy Agency (IEA)

Authors

Barbara Buchner, Jessica Brown and Jan Corfee-Morlot
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