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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries; and the role of conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks in developing countries (REDD+) has emerged as a forest-based climate change mitigation approach for developing countries under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Guidance from the UNFCCC Conference of the Parties (COP) on REDD+ has been developed through successive agreements by Parties since 2007, with the most substantial guidance, comprising seven decisions, adoptedthrough the ‘Warsaw Framework for REDD+’ at COP19 in November 2013. Taken with earlier COP decisions, the UNFCCC set out what can be considered as the ‘REDD+ rulebook’.

Both the role of forests to mitigate climate change as well as the importance of Results-Based Payments (RBPs) / Results-Based Finance (RBF) for REDD+ were then strongly recognisedin the Paris Outcome emerging from COP21 in December 2015. With REDD+ having been enshrined as a core element of the global climate regime going forward, there is renewed momentum for REDD+.

The UN-REDD Programme The UN-REDD Programme has been operational since 2008 as a multilateral REDD+ capacity building support programme for developing countries, yet because the UNFCCC guidance on REDD+ was not complete until the end of 2013, there has been no comprehensive guidance document on REDD+ for interested stakeholders and / or REDD+ practitioners to refer to. This detailed document is the irst of its kind and addresses the absence of a common knowledge base as a reference for REDD+ practitioners. Its objectives are twofold, to:

1. Summarize the REDD+ decisions under the UNFCCC; and
2. Foster a common understanding of the REDD+ decisions under the UNFCCC.

Following a brief introduction and objectives section, the evolution and current status of REDD+ is set out in detail (Section 2), including an overview of relevant UNFCCC COP decisions1. Section 3 then reviews important REDD+ concepts, including descriptions of the following:

• Scope of REDD+: Description of the ive REDD+ activities (Section 3.1)
• Phased approach to implementation:

The three non-discrete phases that allow for an iterative approach to REDD+ implementation (Section 3.2):

o In Phase I (readiness);

o In Phase II (implementation);

o In Phase III (results-based actions);

• Identifying the drivers of deforestation and forest degradation, and the barriers to conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks (section 3.3):
• Four REDD+ elements: Countries are requested to have the following elements in placefor REDD+ implementation and to access RBPs / RBF (section 5):

1. A National Strategy or Action Plan (NS / AP) (section 3.4.1);
2. A national Forest Reference Emission Level / Forest Reference Level (FREL / FRL) (section 3.4.2);
3. A robust and transparent National Forest Monitoring System (NFMS) (section 3.4.3);
4. A Safeguards Information System (SIS) (section 3.4.4).

Section 4 sets out the information requirements for countries implementing REDD+ activities and seeking RBPs / RBF for REDD+ under the UNFCCC, as well as the assessment and analysis processes for this information. There are six required ‘information streams’ to be made available by countries and published by the UNFCCC Secretariat on the information hub:

• A link to the national strategy or action plan;
• FREL / FRL: The assessed FREL / FRL and a link to the inal report of the technical assessment team;

• A description of the NFMS as provided in the technical annex of the Biennial Update Report (BUR);
• A summary of information on how the REDD+ safeguards are being addressed and respected;
• Reported results: the results for each relevant period expressed in tCO2e/year and a link to the technical report of the Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) LULUCF experts who have conducted the technical analysis of the BUR technical annex;

• Additional information on RBPs / RBF: the quantity of results for which paymentswere received, expressed in tCO2e/year, and the entity paying for the results. The inal substantive section (Section 5) sets out the required systems and processes that countries should have in place to access REDD+ RBPs / RBF, as set out in the Warsaw Framework. REDD+ actions should be fully measured, reported and veriied in order to obtain and receive RBPs / RBF. The key role of the Green Climate Fund in channelling inancial resources to developing countries is also reviewed, including how ex-post RBPs / RBF for REDD+ may be distributed, including the accreditation process. This document also addresses the nature of emission reductions from REDD+ and the importance of engaging the private sector. Section 6 provides a summary and conclusion followed by a link to a comprehensive glossary of REDD+key terms.

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