October 21, 2022.- The Coordination of the Technical Subgroup on Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (SGT-MRV) of the Pacific Alliance, represented by Francisco Pinto, met with the Vice Minister of Strategic Development of Natural Resources, Fey Silva, and the Director of Climate Change and Desertification, Milagros Sandoval, of the Ministry of the Environment of Peru. The bilateral meeting was aimed to highlight:

• The scope and opportunities offered to Peru by the second stage of development of the SGT-MRV (2022-2026)

• The transfer of the Secretariat of the SGT-MRV from MINAMBIENTE (Colombia) to MINAM (Peru), after the next Summit of Presidents of the Pacific Alliance.

• Coordinate the fifth face-to-face meeting of the SGT-MRV that will take place in Lima on December 12, 13 and 14.

• Highlight the new contribution from Canada and the potential incorporation of new partners that would support the SGT-MRV in the execution of its Coordination Framework.

The Vice Minister valued the contribution of the work of the SGT-MRV and the exchange instances that enrich the development of climate policies of the Pacific Alliance countries.

Likewise, taking advantage of the visit to MINAM, the SGT-MRV invited a Chilean expert to share his experience with the technical team of the Directorate- General of Climate Change and Desertification, regarding the challenges in the design and implementation of the first green taxes in Chile (including a carbon tax) and the compensation system that should start operating at the beginning of 2023. This exchange was leaded by the economist Rodrigo Bórquez, who was working directly on both instruments as part of the Ministry team of the Chilean Environment.

October 19, 2022.- Francisco Pinto, representing the Coordination of the Technical Subgroup on Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (SGT-MRV) of the Pacific Alliance, participated in the General Assembly of Carbon Pricing of the Americas and the Latin American Climate Summit.

In the first instance, he highlighted both the start of Phase 2 of the SGT-MRV, thanks to the new technical and financial support from Canada that will last until 2026, as well as the updating of the Coordination Framework of the SGT-MRV that guides its work. Regarding the last point, Pinto pointed out that the countries of the Pacific Alliance have expressed the need to continue strengthening capacities and promoting technical exchanges in terms of MRV of carbon price instruments, since a greater deployment of these instruments is observed in the region. Additionally, there is a growing interest in better understanding the implications of Art 6 of the Paris Agreement in practice and the scope of a potential regional carbon market.

On the other hand, Francisco Pinto was part of the ‘Pacific Alliance Stock-Take: Regional Climate Collaboration Across Chile, Colombia, Peru and Mexico’ event that took place at the Latin American Climate Summit organized by the International Emission Trading Assosiation (IETA), International Carbon Action Partnership (ICAP) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). In the session, moderated by Víctor Ortíz, ICAP Senior Consultant, he shared a panel with Francisco Ocampo, Executive Director of Asocarbono (Colombia) and Juan Pedro Searle, Head of Climate Change of the Chilean Ministry of Energy.

He highlighted:

• The configuration and consolidation of a community of practice and exchange of experiences around MRV issues at the level of the Pacific Alliance.

• The virtues of exchange with other countries in the region and with West African countries under a South-South collaboration scheme, and

• The generation of reports and studies on MRV that account for the status of the countries and highlight successful experiences in specific implementations, which are available in the SGT-MRV section on the website of the Pacific Alliance:

https://alianzapacifico.net/grupotecnico-medio-ambiente/#tab_subgrupo-medici%C3%B3n,-reporte-y-verificaci%C3%B3n

August 2nd, 2022.- Canada announced on July 14th a new support package for the Pacific Alliance countries with the objective of strengthening domestic climate measuring, reporting and verification (MRV) systems. The best development and quality of these information systems are the key to design and implement coherent, robust, and effective climate policies.

The announcement was made by the Canadian Minister of the Environment and Climate Change, Steven Guilbeault, at the 29th annual session of the Council of the North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation, held in Mérida, Mexico, where he met with the Secretary of the Environment and Natural Resources of Mexico, María Luisa Albores González, in which he announced CAD$4.5 million for the next four years to support the Pacific Alliance countries.

The member countries of the Pacific Alliance recognize that climate change today represents the main threat to human development, and they also understand that the region is an extremely vulnerable area to its effects. All four countries have made significant efforts to adjust and they have committed to ambitiously reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. Furthermore, today they face the challenge of moving towards a green recovery after the social and economic ravages caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2018, after the Declaration of Cali 2017, the Pacific Alliance reaffirmed its individual and collaborative commitments to the Paris Agreement, making the decision to strengthen information to monitor the impacts of the implementation of actions, programs, and policies. Under this approach, the countries stressed the need for a better understanding and compatibility of their MRV systems. Then, the MRV Technical Subgroup of the Pacific Alliance (SGT-MRV) comes up as an opportunity to work jointly and collaborate among the countries of the region to address this need.

Thanks to a first support package from the Government of Canada, it was possible to develop and implement a Coordination Framework that guided the work of the SGT-MRV between 2018 and 2021. In this first phase, the focus was on MRV of climate financing, mitigation actions, and carbon price instruments, establishing a broad and active community of exchange and knowledge around the MRV systems in the Pacific Alliance countries.

This second support package, which will be implemented by the Gold Standard Foundation, consolidates the work of the SGT-MRV. It will undoubtedly be a fundamental contribution to continue advancing the robustness, transparency, and harmonization of our MRV systems. As well as an opportunity to continue promoting decision-making based on data and evidence, and improve the implementation of the regional climate agenda.

To start this second phase, the SGT-MRV focal points will come together on August 3rd and 4th in Bogotá, Colombia, to assess the first phase of implementation, as well as officially launch the second phase and define the main milestones to accomplish in the next four years.

Some of the reactions of the governments involved:

“Climate change is affecting communities and countries around the world. Global solutions, including Canada’s climate finance commitments, are vital in helping countries not only track and understand their emissions but also increase their climate action. Our engagement with the Pacific Alliance will provide new tools and help national and local governments to build the capacity to establish effective and efficient climate measuring, reporting, and verification (MRV) systems to set mitigation priorities and attract the funding needed to implement their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC)”.

– Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change of Canada

“Gold Standard hopes to support cooperation between governments to maximize the impact of climate finance and achieve the ambitions of the Paris Agreement, but also – and this is important – to warrant that this financing offers tangible contributions to the national development priorities of the countries. Pacific Alliance governments and support local capacity to unlock ongoing progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)”.

– Margaret Kim, CEO of The Gold Standard Foundation

“Monitoring progress in the implementation of mitigation measures and in financing flows are essential to strengthen the comprehensive management of climate change. As well, they contribute to the increase in climate action, directing the country toward a sustainable, resilient, and carbon neutral development.

In this context, the Measuring, Reporting, and Verification Technical Subgroup constitute a valuable space for the exchange of experiences among the countries of the Pacific Alliance, which allows sharing of lessons learned about the national processes underway to implement ambitious climate action, in countries with similar contexts and problems. In this regard, Canada´s support has been essential for the development of the subgroup´s activities and its continuity will allow the feedback of experiences and information to uplift the development of the monitoring systems of the member countries”.

– Milagros Sandoval, General Director of Climate Change and Desertification. Ministry of Environment of Peru

“The technical and financial support provided by Canada for the installation and development of the Pacific Alliance´s SGTMRV was highly successful. We have a community around MRV technical topics that are actively operating. The new support that Canada will provide will be essential to strengthen our work towards more harmonious and sophisticated MRV systems in areas such as mitigation actions, carbon price instruments, and climate funding”.

– Jenny Mager, Head of the Climate Change Division. Ministry of Environment of Chile

“From Colombia as the current Technical Secretary of the Pacific Alliance´s SGTMRV, we highlight the value of sharing experiences and learning with other countries in the Region to strengthen MRV and the comprehensive management of climate change. On this matter, having the support of the Canadian government in this process is an opportunity to technically guide the SGTMRV work based on the needs of the countries, and thus promote more robust, transparent, and regionally aligned MRV systems”.

– Alex Saer, Director of Climate Change and Risk Management, Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development of Colombia

“The Government of Mexico recognizes the need to build measuring systems that contain a common structure and methodology but are sensitive and appropriate to the context, which allows having statistical and documentary information, implementer perceptions, beneficiaries understanding, and collective reflections on the processes and results obtained. Therefore, and given that it is essential to develop multidisciplinary work, the task carried out by the Pacific Alliance´s Technical Subgroup of Measuring, Reporting, and Verification has made it possible to promote institutional work. Its continuity will generate a sense of urgency in the governments of the Alliance to democratize access to international resources, guarantee climate action in the territory, and transparency in the use of financing destined to address climate change.

Thanks to exchange actions between similar countries such as those carried out within the framework of this community of MRV experts, international funds will serve to strengthen the priority programs of governments and the needs of the communities most vulnerable to climate change”.

– Agustín Ávila, General Director of Policies for Climate Change of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources of Mexico (SEMARNAT) 

September 25, 2020. In order to discuss national priorities, optimize resources and develop future work, the SGT-MRV coordination is promoting a consultation process in each country of the Pacific Alliance to discuss and define immediate needs for climate MRV systems. The consultation proposes convening various MRV actors who will be invited by the national focal points of the SGT-MRV.

The expected result of these national consultations is an update to the Coordination Framework that guides the work of the SGT-MRV, establishing specific objectives, activities and products in key areas, particularly in relation to mitigation actions, GHG and SLCP emissions inventories and monitoring and reporting of climate finance.

The work to reinforce institutional arrangements and strengthen domestic technical capacities related to climate MRV systems has been envisioned as a dynamic process within the SGT-MRV, understanding that MRV systems constitute a key tool for the design and implementation of effective climate policies.