A Reporting Service for Environment and Development Negotiations

28 November-12 December

 

 

The eleventh Conference of the Parties (COP 11) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the first Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (COP/MOP 1) took place in Montreal, Canada, from 28 November to 10 December 2005. The event drew 9500 participants, including 2800 government officials, over 5800 representatives of UN bodies and agencies, intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations, and 817 accredited members of the media.

 

At COP/MOP 1, parties discussed and adopted decisions on the outstanding operational details of the Kyoto Protocol, including a package of decisions known as the ?¨Marrakesh Accords.?Æ These decisions contain guidelines for how the Protocol will function, such as those relating to the ?¨flexible mechanisms?Æ intended to help parties reach their emissions targets in a cost-effective way, and a compliance mechanism.

 

COP/MOP 1 also took decisions on a process for considering further commitments for post-2012, when the Protocol??s first commitment period ends. Various methodological, administrative, financial and institutional matters were also considered.

 

COP 11 addressed issues such as capacity building, technology development and transfer, the adverse effects of climate change on developing and least developed countries, and several financial and budget-related issues, including guidelines to the Global Environment Facility (GEF), which serves as the Convention??s financial mechanism. After lengthy negotiations, the COP also agreed on a process for considering future action beyond 2012 under the UNFCCC.

 

The COP and COP/MOP were assisted in their work by the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) and the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA), which met from 29 November to 6 December. There were also over a twenty contact groups formed to help advance discussions, and a large number of informal consultations.

 

A joint COP and COP/MOP high-level segment was held from 7-9 December. Over 120 ministers and other high-level government officials made statements, along with senior representatives of observer organizations, UN bodies, specialized agencies and other stakeholders. Over 140 ?¨side events?Æ were held on a range of climate change topics, (reports can be found at http://www.iisd.ca/climate/cop11/enbots/). There were also several major ?¨parallel events?Æ organized with assistance from the host government, as well as numerous other climate and energy-related exhibits, displays, launches and initiatives.

 

In his closing comments early in the morning on 10 December, COP President St?àphane Dion declared the meetings a success, expressing satisfaction that they had avoided so many potential pitfalls and achieved a consensus outcome. With the Kyoto Protocol now operational and a post-2012 path now envisaged, most participants agreed that COP 11 and COP/MOP 1 was an important milestone in moving the process forward.

 

(Credits IISD)