CI-Guyana awaiting Government’s policy guidance on Climate Change projects

Jun 11, 2015 News

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The recently elected coalesced A Parternship for National Unity and Alliance for Change Government, will have to give guidance on the way forward for three projects aimed at tackling climate change.
This is based on information coming out of Conservation International Foundation Guyana (CI-Guyana).
In a statement issued yesterday CI-Guyana said, that it has written to the new administration and is awaiting its policy guidance regarding three ongoing projects.
The projects are: Implementing the Guyana LCDS Outreach Programme; Climate Resilience Strategy and Action Plan; Guyana Monitoring Reporting and Verification (MRV) System Year 4 and Year 5 Support.
The CI-Guyana role is to provide project administration and other services for the implementation of the said projects which are being executed by the Office of Climate Change (OCC) and the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC).
The implementation of the projects is governed by an agreement between Guyana and Norway. A partnership between the countries was formally established in November 2009 through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and Joint Concept Note (JCN) on issues of climate change, biodiversity and sustainable, low carbon development.
The MoU is currently in its fifth and final year and is up for renewal prior to the 21st UN Climate Change Conference of Parties slated for Paris in November this year.
The MoU in place sets out the framework by which the Norwegian Government releases funds to the Guyanese Government in return for clear, measurable and verified commitments related to the transformation of the economy along a low carbon path.
Since July 2014, CI-Guyana has been partnering with the two Governments in the implementation and execution of the three projects.
According to CI-Guyana, the partnership further enables the cooperation between the two countries in the fight against climate change, protection of biodiversity and enhancement of sustainable development.
The Project, ‘Implementing the Guyana LCDS Outreach Programme’ aims to improve Guyana’s resilience to climate change and growth of a low-carbon economy, through the mainstreaming of Climate Change and the LCDS into planning processes and decision making of key stakeholder groups.
The project is a requirement under the revised JCN of 2012. The project principally seeks to develop a communications plan targeting national and international audiences, prepare communications materials, execute outreach sessions, and improve the capacity of key groups to understand and incorporate issues related to climate change and the LCDS within the context of their mandates.
This project is being executed principally by the OCC. CI-Guyana is providing administrative oversight, and monitoring and evaluation of the progress of the project and considerations to sustain awareness, education and outreach.
The ‘Climate Resilience Strategy and Action Plan’ Project for Guyana is a part of the 2013 to 2015 stage of the LCDS announced in March 2013. This project provides support for international consultancy services for the preparation of a Climate Resilience Strategy and Action Plan (CRSAP) to guide the country’s efforts in climate resilience, adaptation and water management.
The CRSAP is being developed based on the best available science on, and traditional and indigenous knowledge of, the inter-linkages between the ecological and infrastructural systems, and social considerations in order to develop a strategy to address the direct and indirect impacts of climate change.
It aims to mainstream climate resilience and adaptation measures across Guyana’s economic sectors. CI-Guyana is executing this project on behalf of the OCC, with responsibility for procurement, contractual arrangements, and monitoring project progress.
As the beneficiary on behalf of the Government of Guyana, the OCC is overseeing progress of the in-country element of the consultancy, provides recommendations, and approves project deliverables.
Meanwhile, the Project ‘Guyana Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) System Year 4 and Year 5 Support’ is being executed by the GFC. CI-Guyana is providing administrative oversight of the project.
Falling under the Joint Concept Note 2012, this project further supports the establishment of a system for sustained MRV of Guyana’s forest carbon, including implementing REDD+policies.
It provides the evidential basis for Guyana to receive results-based compensation for forest carbon conservation activities in the long-term.
This project is realizing the fourth and fifth assessments of deforestation and forest carbon change in Guyana covering the period January 2013 to December 2014, and contributes to informing stakeholders about the work that is being done on forest monitoring in Guyana. Three previous assessments were completed for the periods October 2009 to September 2010; October 2010 to December 2011; and January to December 2012.

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